Wednesday, 26 November 2008

Creating position of strength for Vietnam-Laos-Cambodia in international and region integration

Nhan Dan
November 25, 2008

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has arrived in Vientianne to attend the 5th Vietnam-Laos-Cambodia Development Triangle Summit. This is an important event aimed at strengthening solidarity, co-operation and close-knit relations between the three countries, creating the position of strength for each country and for all the three countries in the process of international and regional integration.

Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia lying in the Southeast Asian region share a lot of cultural and historical similarities. The relations of Vietnam with Laos and Cambodia have seen continuous consolidation and fine developments in the spirit of solidarity, friendship and comprehensive co-operation which has been ever more expanded and gone in depth, particularly in the economic, trade and investment co-operation. The People’s Democratic Republic of Laos has been deploying its implementation of the Agreement on 2008 scientific, technical, cultural and economic co-operation. The two countries has enhanced the mechanism of constant contacts and exchanges between the senior leaders, between the officials, sectors and localities. Vietnam and Cambodia have also enhanced their high-ranking visits to each other with the current visit to Vietnam by Samdec Chea Sim, Chairman of the Cambodian People’s Party and President of the Senate, making a contribution to raising the two countries’ relations and comprehensive co-operation to a new height. Vietnam and Cambodia have agreed to accelerate further the exchange of visits by delegations at all levels in order to strengthen mutual understanding; unanimously agreed to reserve priority for co-operation in areas the two countries have potentials of such as trade, investment, energy, mineral mining, oil and gas, industrial plants, communication and transport; and agreed to create opportunities for trade and service activities to bring the two countries’ trade to reach over US$ 2 billion in 2010.

We are glad to see that as far as the Development Triangle is concerned, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia have taken active steps to deploy the Vientianne Declaration (November 2004), the Siam Reap Agreement between the three prime ministers in July 2004 and a lot of other important plans for the Development Triangle.

The 5th conference between the prime ministers of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia is aimed at enhancing solidarity, co-operation and close-knit relations between the three countries, creating favourable conditions for the social and economic development and guaranteeing political security in each country; establishing a special preferential policy and mechanism for the Development Triangle; making clear the Master Plan for the Vietnam-Laos-Cambodia Development Triangle already approved at the 4th Conference and working out the direction for the implementation of its content as pointed out in the Vientianne Declaration of building the Development Triangle, intensifying the relations with Japan, creating the position of strength in each country and the common position of strength of the three countries in the process of international and regional integration, particularly within the framework of ASEAN, WEC, ACMECS and the co-operation between Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam.

Good success to the Conference, thus making a contribution to consolidating and tightening the friendly relations and comprehensive co-operation between Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, making a contribution to peace, stability, co-operation and development in the Southeast Asian region and the whole world.

NHAN DAN

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