Viet Nam News Agency | 15 July 2002

VIET NAM, LAOS SIGN BILATERAL AGREEMENT FOR 2002

Ha Noi, Jan. 15 (VNA) — Viet Nam’s Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and his Lao counterpart, Thonglune Sisoulit, today, Jan. 15, signed in Vientiane an agreement on economic, cultural, scientific and technical cooperation for 2002 between the two countries.

Dung and Sisoulit also concluded the minutes of the 24th meeting of the Inter-governmental Committee for Economic, Cultural and Scientific-Technical Cooperation between Viet Nam and Laos, which opened in Vientiane the same day.

At the meeting, the two sides noted with pleasure the stronger development in the two countries comprehensive cooperation. They said in 2001 - the first year of their five-year bilateral cooperation - the two countries implemented numerous major cooperative agreements for 2001-2005 in education and training, agriculture and other areas.

"Many projects to build roads linking the two countries were completed and the first phase of Viet Nam’s Vung Ang sea port was put into use, while Cua Lo and Da Nang (central Viet Nam) were upgraded to serve as transportation links between the two countries," they said.

They agreed that bilateral trade was boosted to help solve market difficulties, contributing to improving the living conditions of people in remote and isolated regions.

Both sides also noted with satisfaction the effictive operation of projects invested by Vietnamese businesses in Laos in production of medicines and construction material and processing forest products.

In 2002, the two countries will continue to maintain bilateral cooperation in the existing sectors and diversify the forms and content of their cooperation.

In trade, they will create favourable conditions for the exchange of goods by issuing preferential tax policies, granting tax reduction to more items, building border economic zones and upgrading border markets.

The two deputy PMs agreed to submit to the two Governments a number of measures to be taken to promote trade, investment, production and business operations in each country.

At the meeting, Viet Nam and Laos also signed an agreement on bilateral cooperation in education and training, as well as regulations on financial management of Viet Nam’s non-refundable aid to Laos.—VNA