Hue (VNA) – The Border Guard Commands of Hue city, Da Nang and Quang Ngai province on December 9 held their 19th annual meeting with the Military Command of Laos’ Sekong province to review cooperation in border management and security.
The two sides reported close and effective coordination over the past year in protecting the Vietnam–Laos borderline, maintaining the status of border markers and ensuring security and social order along the shared border. Their collaboration has contributed to building a stable environment for socio-economic development and deepening the traditional friendship and special solidarity between the armed forces and people of both countries.
Relevant units were reported to keep strictly implementing agreements and legal documents related to regulations governing the Vietnam–Laos border zone. Border guard forces from the three Vietnamese localities and Sekong province maintained regular information exchange and jointly carried out one provincial-level patrol and 49 patrols at the border post–company level, engaging thousands of officers and soldiers.
The twinning model between Vietnamese border guard posts and Lao border companies, as well as between pairs of villages on both sides of the border, has proved effective in enhancing exchanges, strengthening community ties and supporting local livelihoods. Vietnamese Border Guard units also provided material assistance worth nearly 3 billion VND (113,760 USD) to the authorities and people of Sekong province. In addition, they continued the programme to support for 15 Lao students to in maintaining their education.
Both sides agreed to uphold existing agreements and legal frameworks on Vietnam–Laos border management, and to intensify information sharing, joint patrols and coordinated efforts in crime prevention. Communication campaigns will be strengthened to raise public awareness of border regulations, thus facilitating legal cross-border trade and people-to-people exchanges.
They also committed to maintaining regular or ad-hoc meetings where necessary, improving the effectiveness of paired-border-post and paired-village mechanisms, and jointly addressing arising issues in accordance with regulations to ensure stability and security in the border area.
On this occasion, representatives of the two sides signed the minutes of the meeting./.
