Vietnam – Laos special friendship festival to be held

• Vietnam, Laos issue joint statement
• Vietnam-Laos relations of special solidarity enjoy substantive progress

The announcement was made at a press conference held in Hanoi on October 30 by the Ministry of Information and Communications.

The event will mark the 57th anniversary of diplomatic ties and the 42nd anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation between the two countries.

Nguyen Ba Hao, deputy director of the Nghe An Information and Communications Department (standing), gives a speech at the press conference. (Photo: VNA)

The event will draw representatives from the Lao Embassy in Vietnam and leaders of Lao provinces, as well as leaders of provinces and cities across Vietnam, representatives from both countries as well as Lao students in Nghe An and local residents.

It is the second year the festival has been organised. Last year it was held in the northern mountainous province of Dien Bien.

The festival will feature a series of activities, including artistic performances, a photo exhibition on Vietnam – Laos special ties, and an economic, culture and tourism fair.

A conference to promote trade, investment and tourism in Nghe An will be held, seeking measures to strengthen border exchange activities.

Addressing the press conference, Deputy Minister of Information and Communications Hoang Vinh Bao emphasised the significance of the festival in strengthening the traditional friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and Laos.

The festival offered a chance to boost the dissemination of information about external relations in border areas. This would raise the awareness and responsibility of local authorities and people of firmly safeguarding national independence, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity, maintaining peace and stability for national development, and raising Vietnam’s position and reputation in the region and the world as a whole, he said./.