Vietnam, Laos step up defence cooperation
Sen. Lt. Gen. Nguyen Tan Cuong, Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People's Army (VPA) and Deputy Minister of National Defence, met with his Lao counterpart Sen. Lt. Gen. Khamliang Outhakaysone in Vientiane on September 4, on the sidelines of the 21st ASEAN Chiefs of Defence Forces Meeting (ACDFM-21).
During the meeting, Khamliang Outhakaysone expressed his satisfaction with the progress in the relations between the two countries and their armies. He also thanked the VPA for its significant assistance for the Lao People's Army (LPA) over the past years, particularly during Laos' 2024 Chairmanship of ASEAN.
The Lao official held that Vietnam’s participantion in the ACDFM-21 demonstrates its strong support for the LPA, contributing to the overall success of the meeting.
For his part, Cuong praised the Lao army's preparations for the ACDFM-21 and affirmed that the Vietnamese delegation will make active contributions to ensure success for the event, thus supporting Laos' chairmanship.
Sharing plans for the two sides’ joint work in the remaining months of 2024, he said that the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defence has directed relevant agencies to develop and implement cooperation initiatives in the fields of Party and political affairs, national defence and security, border management and protection, and officer training, among others.
On this occasion, Cuong extended an invitation to the Lao Chief of the General Staff and other leaders of the Lao Ministry of National Defence to attend the celebration of the VPA's 80th founding anniversary (December 22, 1944 - 2024) and its related events.
