The HCM City Union of Friendship Organisations (HCMUFO) and the Việt Nam-Laos Friendship Association in the city on Thursday held a ceremony to mark the 42nd anniversary of Laos’ National Day (December 2).— Photo VGP

HCM CITY — The HCM City Union of Friendship Organisations (HCMUFO) and the Việt Nam-Laos Friendship Association in the city on Thursday held a ceremony to mark the 42nd anniversary of Laos’ National Day (December 2).

Addressing the event, HCMUFO Vice President Nguyễn Văn Mạnh highlighted the neighbourliness and solidarity between Việt Nam and Laos, as well as multi-faceted co-operation between HCM City and Lao localities.

HCM City will make every effort to promote the long-standing friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive co-operation between Việt Nam and Laos, for the sake of the two countries’ people and for peace, co-operation and progress in the region and the world, he said.

Lao Consul General in HCM City Somxay Sanamoune expressed gratitude for the valuable support of the Vietnamese Party, State and people, as well as of HCM City for Laos. Laos will join hands with Việt Nam to maintain and boost the friendship, which is an invaluable asset shared by the two nations, he said.

On Wednesday, the embassy of Lao People’s Democratic Republic to Việt Nam held a reception on the occasion of the 42nd National Day of Lao PDR and the 55th anniversary of Việt Nam-Laos diplomatic relations.

Addressing the event, Lao Ambassador Thongsavanh Phomvihane acknowledged the support the Vietnamese Party, State and people have given to his country’s struggle for national liberation in the past and to Laos’ national development at present.

That support illustrates the pure relationship between Việt Nam and Laos, which is a priceless asset which must be maintained and passed down to future generations, he noted.

On behalf of the Vietnamese Party, State and people, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Phạm Bình Minh offered congratulations on Laos’s National Day.

He expressed his belief that the country will successfully implement the resolution of the 10th National Congress of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party and the eighth five-year socio-economic development plan, building Laos into a prosperous nation.

Despite ordeals, hardships and sacrifices, “history has proven that the special solidarity between Việt Nam and Laos is a wellspring that amplifies our strength and empowers us from one victory to the next,” he said.

The official stressed that the Việt Nam-Laos Year of Friendship and Solidarity 2017, the 55th founding anniversary of their diplomatic ties and the 40th anniversary of the signing of the countries’ Treaty of Amity and Co-operation are bright milestones in their relationship.

Deputy PM Minh also spoke highly of Việt Nam-Laos co-operation in both bilateral and multilateral aspects in 2017, noting that he believes the two countries’ people will continue to intensify bilateral co-operation, thereby living up to the Vietnamese and Lao peoples’ aspirations for peace, stability and prosperity. —VNS