By Xinhua | October 21, 2023 | 10:20
 |
| (Xinhua/Liu Weibing) |
Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and Chinese president, met in Beijing on Friday with Thongloun Sisoulith, general secretary of the Central Committee of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party (LPRP) and president of Laos.
After their meeting, the two leaders signed a 2024-2028 Action Plan between the CPC and the PPRL to build a Sino-Laos community with a shared future.
During the meeting, Xi pointed out that both sides should use the new five-year action plan to enrich relations between the two parties and the two countries and give new impetus to peace, stability, development and prosperity in the region to lend.
He also called on the CPC and the PPRL to continuously deepen political mutual trust, improve governance capacity and strengthen communication and cooperation.
The two sides should better realize the potential of the China-Laos Railway, steadily advance the construction of the China-Laos Economic Corridor and create a model for Belt and Road cooperation in the region, Xi said.
China is willing to encourage more of its companies to invest in Laos, import more high-quality agricultural products from Laos and expand cooperation in energy and mining, he said.
He also expressed that China supports Laos, which will assume the rotating presidency of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) next year, to play a more important role in regional and international affairs.
Thongloun, who is in Beijing for the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation and a working visit to China, expressed gratitude for China’s valuable and long-term support for Laos’ economic and social development. He pointed out that the new five-year action plan will further consolidate the friendly cooperation between the two parties and the two countries.
Laos is willing to strengthen high-level interaction with China, advance practical cooperation in the Laos-China Economic Corridor and other projects, and enhance coordination and cooperation in ASEAN-China relations and regional affairs, with the aim of achieving a to promote new development of bilateral relations, said Thongloun.
After the meeting, the two leaders witnessed the signing of bilateral cooperation documents in areas such as Belt and Road cooperation, digital economy, media, culture, tourism, public health, and inspection and customs quarantine.
Senior Chinese officials Cai Qi and Wang Yi were present at the meeting.
(Web editor: 吴思萱, Zhao Jian)