The 5 th meeting of the Vietnam-Laos Joint Committee for Border Marker Planting took place in Hanoi from January 5-9 with the participation of Vietnamese Deputy Foreign Minister Ho Xuan Son and Lao Deputy Foreign Minister Bounkeut Sangsomsack.

Son is also Head of the National Boundary Commission and Chairman of the Vietnam-Laos Joint Committee for Border Marker Planting, while his Lao counterpart is also Head of the Laos-Vietnam Border Committee and Chairman of the Laos-Vietnam Joint Committee for Border Marker Planting.

The two sides spoke highly of the results of a project to plant more border markers and upgrade the existing ones along the Vietnam-Laos border. By December 31, 2012 , they had defined 769 positions/811 markers and planted 749 markers at 707 positions.

They worked out measures to advance the planting process with the determination to complete the task by June this year and discussed the creation of legal documents to complete the project by 2014 as agreed by leaders of both countries.

The two sides also deliberated plans for the State-level inaugural ceremony of marker No. 460 at Thanh Thuy (Nghe An province, Vietnam ) – Nam On (Boli Khamsay province, Laos ) border gate, which marks the completion of field marker planting.

On January 8, Vietnamese Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh, who is also Head of the State Steering Committee on Land Border Demarcation and Marker Planting, hosted a reception for Sangsomsack./.VNA