Vietnam’s President Nguyen Xuan Phuc and his wife today [August 9] arrived in Vientiane to begin a two-day Lao trip that takes place just six weeks after the Hanoi visit paid by General Secretary of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party and President of Laos Thongloun Sisoulith.

Phuc’s visit to Laos is his first foreign trip and the first overseas tour by a Vietnamese leader after the National Party Congress in February 2021.

Vietnam’s President Nguyen Xuan Phuc and his wife arrives in Vientiane on Monday morning. Photos: VNA

High-ranking officials accompany the President include four members of the Politburo, the country’s most powerful body, namely Deputy Chairman of the National Assembly Tran Thanh Man, Minister of Public Security To Lam, Minister of National Defense Phan Van Giang, and Head of the Central Economic Commission Tran Tuan Anh, and other representatives of Vietnamese ministries and agencies.

The reception at the airport.

This is also the first foreign leader trip paid to Laos after its National Congress held in January 2021.

The visit is expected to “contribute to preserving the special Laos-Vietnam relationship and opening a new stage in the bilateral relations and between the two peoples.”

The Vietnamese delegation was welcomed in Vientiane.

According to Vietnamese Ambassador to Laos Nguyen Ba Hung, the visit that features some aforementioned “firsts” indicates how special the Vietnam-Laos relationship is in each country’s foreign policy, the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) reported.

The visit will cover issues in politics-external relations, defense-security, trade-investment, socio-cultural ties, and regional and international affairs of mutual concerns.

Vietnamese President Phuc will attend the inauguration and handover of the Lao National Assembly House, which was built with financial and technical supports from the Vietnamese Government.

The US$111-million five-story neoclassical edifice, which is also a cultural research center, is “a gift of the Vietnamese Party, State, and people”. The Lao parliament seat construction was kicked off in 2017, one year after the visit to Vientiane paid by Nguyen Phu Trong, general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) in November 2016.

In terms of investment, Vietnam has poured $5.16 billion in 209 projects in Laos.

General Secretary of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party and President of Laos Thongloun Sisoulith and his wife welcome Vietnam's President Nguyen Xuan Phuc and his wife.

Ambassador Hung highlighted the two pillars in the bilateral relations in the future, including boosting the economic ties and disseminating long-lasting friendship among the people, especially the youth.

Meanwhile, Lao Ambassador to Vietnam Sengphet Houngboungnuang said that the visit shows the two countries’ solidarity to help each other overcome hardship caused by the global health crisis.

Houngboungnuang said Phuc is expected to deliver a speech at the extraordinary plenum of the Lao National Assembly.

He forecast many agreements and contracts would be signed during the visits.

Vietnam's State President was welcomed in Vientiane.