At the invitation of General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party (LPRP) and President of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (LPDR), Thongloun Sisoulith, and his spouse, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Viet Nam (CPV), To Lam, together with his spouse and the Vietnamese high-level delegation, are paying a state visit to Laos, to attend the 50th National Day celebration of the LPDR; and to co-chair a high-level meeting between the CPV and the LPRP from December 1 to 2, 2025.

Taking place at a time when the two countries are commemorating multiple important events in their great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between Viet Nam and Laos, Party General Secretary To Lam’s state visit to Laos demonstrates the special attention that Viet Nam’s top leaders give to Laos; and affirms that Viet Nam gives top priority to Laos in its foreign policy. The visit has profound significance for the people of the two countries; reaffirming that the great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between Viet Nam and Laos are valuable assets that generations of leaders and people of the two countries have the responsibility to preserve and promote. The visit also contributes to strengthening substantive cooperation, bringing practical benefits to the people of the two countries.

Laos achieves comprehensive successes along its development path

After nearly 40 years of carrying out the renewal process, the Party, State and people of Laos have secured important and comprehensive achievements on the path to national construction. Under the leadership of the LPRP, Laos has undergone a strong transformation, with political and social stability maintained, national defence and security safeguarded, people’s livelihoods steadily improved, and national cultural identity preserved and promoted, a foundation that is widely seen as the spiritual foundation for development.

Laos has a rich and diverse culture, influenced by neighbouring cultures such as Thailand, Cambodia, China, and Viet Nam. Buddhism plays a dominant role, deeply influencing the spiritual life, festivals, and customs of Lao people. Temples, pagodas, royal palaces, especially Buddhist temples, are important symbols of Laos. Wood and stone carvings, carvings of Buddhist symbols, and traditional motifs are in the artistic life of Laos. Traditional music, using musical instruments such as pipes, drums, gongs, and percussion instruments and traditional dances are cultural features of beliefs and festivals in Laos. The music of Khaen, a Lao instrument, was recognised by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as an intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2017.

Laos continues to adhere to the policy of peace, independence, friendship, and cooperation; implementing diverse, multilateral, and multi-level cooperation relations.

In recent times, Laos has carried out a series of important foreign affairs and diplomatic activities to strengthen cooperative relations with countries and international organisations, while focusing on consolidating, and strengthening relations with neighbouring countries sharing borders and ASEAN countries, promoting relations with major countries and important partners.

Regarding foreign affairs, Laos currently has diplomatic relations with about 150 countries and has held the ASEAN Chairmanship for three times (2004, 2016, and 2024), successfully assuming the AIPA 45 Chairmanship in 2024. Laos has attached great importance to ASEAN, and has strived to gain support from ASEAN and ASEAN's development partners.

Preserving Viet Nam–Laos relations, a precious shared asset of both nations

At the ceremony marking the 50th National Day of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (December 2, 1975 – 2025) and the 105th birth anniversary of President Kaysone Phomvihane (December 13, 1920 –2025), President Luong Cuong emphasised that the Party, the State and the people of Viet Nam are always proud to have a loyal, steadfast and like-minded friend. Every victory of the Vietnamese Revolution, both in the struggle for national liberation in the past and in today’s nation-building and development, is closely associated with the special solidarity and the spirit of sharing hardships, enjoying joy and bearing suffering together shown by the Lao people.

The special Viet Nam–Laos relationship was directly founded by the great leaders President Ho Chi Minh, President Kaysone Phomvihane and President Souphanouvong. It has been diligently nurtured, protected and strengthened by generations of leaders and citizens of both countries, becoming ever more profound and flourishing.

Political and diplomatic relations continue to develop well, marked by closeness and mutual trust. Following the high-level meeting between the Communist Party of Viet Nam and the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party (February 2025), both sides have been promoting existing cooperation mechanisms while reviewing, adjusting and establishing new ones. The two countries have focused their discussions on strategic issues, guidelines and policies related to security and development.

Both sides have maintained high-level and multi-level delegation exchanges in various forms, while also successfully organising many significant external activities between senior leaders of the two Parties and two States. Notably, from the fourth quarter of 2024 to the present, General Secretary To Lam and the Lao General Secretary and President have met five times, holding extensive, comprehensive and substantive discussions on core issues, thereby deepening the close ties between the two Parties and the two countries.

Parliamentary cooperation between the two countries has consistently been nurtured by successive generations of parliamentary leaders. The two sides regularly exchange experience, and support each other in drafting their Constitutions and legal systems; strengthening the organisation, functions, and mandates of their NA committees; training experts, and specialists; and coordinating with the Governments and the Fronts on domestic and external affairs. Mutual support at regional and international forums, along with exchanges at various levels, the signing of cooperation agreements, and the ratification of inter-governmental accords, has made a substantial contribution, together with the political systems of both nations, to building and developing a law-governed socialist state “of the people, by the people, and for the people”. These efforts have also shaped the special nature of relations between the Vietnamese National Assembly and the Lao National Assembly.

Cooperation in defence and security continues to be strengthened, both in breadth, and depth. The two sides have closely coordinated, and supported each other in maintaining political stability, ensuring national defence, security, and social order; effectively implementing the Protocol on Defence Cooperation for the 2025–2029 period and defence cooperation plan for 2025; successfully organising the fifth Viet Nam–Laos Defence Policy Dialogue; and jointly carrying out the search, collection, and repatriation of remains of Vietnamese volunteer soldiers and experts who sacrificed their lives in Laos during the war.

Economic, trade, and investment cooperation has also seen positive progress. The two sides signed four documents on the occasion of the 47th meeting of the Viet Nam-Laos Intergovernmental Committee. Numerous Vietnamese investment projects in Laos have been operating effectively, making significant contributions to Laos’s socio-economic development, creating jobs, and increasing incomes for thousands of workers, as well as adding to the state budget, particularly in the fields of telecommunications, banking, energy, mining, rubber, and food processing. Notably, Vietnamese investment in Laos is rebounding in a sustainable direction, reaching 322 million USD in the first eight months of 2025 (six times higher than the same period in 2024), focusing on energy, mining, and transportation. Many strategic projects have now been completed, most prominently the inauguration of Berth No. 3 at Vung Ang Port.

The two sides continue to maintain security, order, and peace along the border, ensuring the protection of internal political affairs. At the same time, both countries strengthen cooperation in combating transnational crimes, especially drug trafficking, human trafficking, smuggling, as well as in managing immigration, illegal migration, and residence.

In multilateral cooperation, the two countries coordinate closely and support each other at regional and international forums, particularly within the frameworks of ASEAN, the United Nations, and sub-regional cooperation mechanisms. Viet Nam is actively supporting Laos in successfully assuming important international roles in 2025.

General Secretary To Lam’s working visit to Laos takes place at a time when both countries are striving toward important development goals: Laos is implementing its socio-economic development strategy and structural reform, while Viet Nam is executing its Strategy for 2045. In this context, the visit will help strengthen political trust, open new cooperation directions, and create opportunities for the two countries to prosper together.

Published: November 29, 2025
Production Manager: Chu Hong Thang – Pham Truong Son
Content: Nguyen Ha – Minh Hang
Design: Nha Nam
Translation: NDO
Sources: the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and VNA