NDO/VNA - Representatives of the Border Guard Command under the Ministry of Defence of Vietnam and the Border Guard Department of the General Staff of the Lao People's Army held a conference to review three years of implementing their cooperation agreement on December 11 in Huong Hoa district, the central province of Quang Tri.

Deputy Defence Minister Sen. Lieut. Gen. Hoang Xuan Chien of Vietnam and Lao Deputy Minister of Defence Lieut. Gen. Vongkham Phommakone attended the conference.

Addressing the event, Deputy Minister Sen. Lieut. Gen. Hoang Xuan Chien highly valued results of the agreement’s implementation over the past three years, thus contributing to maintaining peace, stability and development of each country’s border areas, boosting the socio-economic development of Vietnam and Laos, and consolidating the special friendship and comprehensive cooperation between the two Parties, States and armies.

Over the past three years, the two sides maintained the regular exchange of information and close cooperation in joint patrols and experience sharing in border protection and management, anti-crime, while strengthening the COVID-19 prevention and control work. They also coordinated to carry out drills to ensure order and security in the border areas, organise border friendship exchange programmes in order to promote the traditional friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between the two armies.

At the conference, both sides agreed that the two countries’ border guards will continue coordinating to implement contents of the Cooperation Protocol for the 2020-2025 period and the cooperation plan for 2022 between the two defence ministries, particularly in fighting crime, illegal immigration and the COCID-19 pandemic.