Prime Minister Le Minh Hung and his Lao counterpart Sonexay Siphandone, who is in Vietnam for an official visit and attendance of the ASEAN Future Forum 2026, held talks on Sunday in Hanoi. During the talks, they said cooperation in defense, security, foreign affairs, and coordination at regional and global forums continues to be strengthened; cooperation between ministries, sectors, and localities of the two countries is expanding.
In the first quarter of 2026, Vietnam's investment in Laos reached 582 million USD, an increase of more than 4.2 times compared to the same period last year, bringing the total investment of Vietnam in Laos to 6.6 billion USD for 289 projects.
Both sides agreed to continue maintaining effective high-level visits and contacts at all levels. They stressed the need to seriously and effectively implement high-level agreements and the results of the 48th session of the Vietnam-Laos Intergovernmental Committee. This will create a foundation for both sides to coordinate and successfully implement the Bilateral Cooperation Agreement between the Government of Vietnam and the Government of Laos for the period 2026-2030.
The two sides agreed to organize well the commemorations of the 65th anniversary of their diplomatic relations and the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Vietnam-Laos Friendship and Cooperation Treaty in 2027.
The Vietnamese and Lao leaders pledged to increase bilateral trade to 10 billion USD by 2030. The two Prime Ministers agreed to continue improving the effectiveness and innovation of cooperation in education and training, science and technology, high-quality human resource development, and training of leaders and managers at all levels.
They stressed the need to soon establish the Laos-Vietnam Friendship University in Laos; to promote cultural, sports, and tourism exchanges; and to expand cooperation in clean agriculture, e-commerce, digital transformation, and innovation.
The two sides also had extensive discussions on regional and global situations, agreeing to continue close coordination and mutual support in multilateral forums, especially the ASEAN, the UN, and the Mekong sub-regional cooperation mechanisms. They agreed to coordinate in maintaining ASEAN's common stance on strategic issues related to peace, stability, and development in the region, including the East Sea issue and the Mekong River water resources.
Following the talks, the two Prime Ministers witnessed the signing ceremony of cooperation documents between the ministries and agencies of the two countries.
Also on Sunday, in Hanoi, Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung received Bounleua Phandanouvong, Head of the Central Committee's Foreign Affairs Commission of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, who is visiting Vietnam to attend the seminar "The role of political parties in building the ASEAN community" as part of the ASEAN Future Forum.
