March 6, 2025
HANOI – Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính hosted a reception in Hà Nội on March 5 for Lao Deputy Minister of National Defence and Chief of the General Staff of the Lao People’s Army (LPA) Lieut. Gen Saichay Kommasith, believing that he will play a crucial role in developing the Lao army while bolstering bilateral defence ties.
Stressing the enduring significance of the great Việt Nam-Laos friendship in national building and safeguarding of both countries, PM Chính reaffirmed Việt Nam’s appreciation for Laos’ support in national defence and development.
Việt Nam will continue to stand by Laos as it navigates challenges and strives for sustainable growth, he said, reaffirming Việt Nam’s commitment to facilitating the two armies’ cooperation.
Defence collaboration, he noted, stands as a crucial pillar of the bilateral relationship, underpinned by shared achievements across a wide range of areas, including joint military and defence planning, intelligence sharing, strategic consultations, mutual support in enhancing defence capabilities, human resources training, and effective mechanisms for military exchanges, dialogues and twinning.
Kommasith, for his part, informed the host about the successful talks between the General Staff of the LPA and the General Staff of the Việt Nam People’s Army, saying that both sides agreed to accelerate joint work, focusing on effectively realising common perceptions reached by leaders, especially the 2024 Việt Nam-Laos High-Level Agreement and outcomes of the recent trilateral meeting among leaders of Việt Nam, Laos, and Cambodia.
According to him, they pledged to enhance strategic consultations through high-level meetings and the Defence Policy Dialogue mechanism; reinforce border security coordination, including the building of border village clusters; prioritise human resources training, expand collaboration in logistics, information technology, defence industry, economic development and mutual support at multilateral forums.
PM Chính suggested the two armies enhance coordination and provide strategic advice about national defence and security matters. He underscored the need of translating the outcomes of the February trilateral meetings among the party leaders and prime ministers of Việt Nam, Laos, and Cambodia in HCM City into actions, thus reinforcing the close solidarity among the three nations and advancing existing cooperation mechanisms.
Key priorities include increasing military exchanges and joint activities, personnel training, collaboration in cybersecurity, logistics, and technical support, strengthening management and protection of the Việt Nam-Laos border for peace, stability and development, fighting transnational crime, and enhancing awareness about the Việt Nam – Laos great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between the two countries and armies.