China, Laos Pledge Stronger Ties for a Shared Future

On March 13, 2025, Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with Lao Foreign Minister Thongsavanh Phomvihane in Beijing.

Wang Yi said, since the establishment of diplomatic relations 64 years ago, the two parties and the two countries have always stood together through thick and thin and helped each other, and the comprehensive strategic cooperative relationship between the two sides has become ever more robust and resilient. General Secretary Xi Jinping had a successful meeting with General Secretary Thongloun Sisoulith on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in Kazan last year, injecting strong impetus to deepening the building of a China-Laos community with a shared future in the new era. As changes unseen in a century are unfolding at a faster pace, China has always viewed and advanced China-Laos relations from the strategic perspective of a priority in its neighborhood diplomacy and the future of socialism. Wang Yi extended congratulations to the Lao People's Revolutionary Party on its 70th anniversary and the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Lao People's Democratic Republic. He said that China firmly supports the Lao side in strengthening Party leadership, advancing reform and opening up, and elevating its international standing. China is ready to enhance strategic mutual trust with Laos, strengthen solidarity and coordination, and accelerate the building of a China-Laos community with a shared future.

Wang Yi noted that China's "two sessions" have just concluded successfully, setting an economic growth target of around 5 percent for 2025. This reflects a scientific attitude of seeking truth from facts, an enterprising spirit of striving hard to deliver, and the resolve to meet difficulties head-on. Under the leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, China will further deepen reform comprehensively, develop new quality productive forces and pursue high-quality development. No matter how the external environment changes, China will remain committed to opening-up and promote reform and development through opening-up. As a comrade and brother, China welcomes Laos to seize the new opportunities of China's development and join hands to march toward modernization.

Wang Yi stressed that China is ready to work with Laos to adhere to high-level strategic guidance and strengthen exchanges between the two parties and countries at various levels. China is ready to deepen and expand practical cooperation, advance the development of the China-Laos Economic Corridor, expand and strengthen the China-Laos Railway, accelerate comprehensive development along the route, and expand cooperation in energy, artificial intelligence, digital economy and other fields. China is ready to strengthen bilateral and multilateral law enforcement cooperation to crack hard down on cross-border criminal activities such as telecom fraud and gambling. China firmly supports a united and strong ASEAN, and is ready to work with Laos and other ASEAN countries to enrich the China-ASEAN community with a shared future and jointly safeguard regional peace, stability, development and revitalization.

Thongsavanh Phomvihane extended congratulations on the successful convening of China's "two sessions" and the important outcomes and commended China's leapfrog development in spite of a complex external environment. Laos and China are socialist comrades and brothers who share weal and woe and move forward shoulder to shoulder. Laos firmly pursues the one-China policy and supports the Belt and Road Initiative and the three major global initiatives put forth by President Xi Jinping. Laos is willing to work with China to deliver on the new action plan on building the Laos-China community with a shared future, promote the Laos-China Railway to exert a greater economic effect, make it into a "golden route" and a "road of friendship" between Laos and China, and further promote the vision of interconnected development of Laos, China and Thailand. Laos is willing to strengthen cooperation in emerging areas such as energy, agriculture, tourism, infrastructure, personnel training and artificial intelligence, jointly crack down on cross-border crimes of online gambling and telecom fraud, and push for greater progress in building a community with a shared future between Laos and China. He thanked China for its strong support and assistance to Laos when it held the rotating chairmanship of ASEAN last year, and expressed willingness to jointly advance the process of East Asia cooperation.

The two sides also had an exchange of views on international and regional issues of common interest and concern.

After the talks, the two sides signed the Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of the People's Republic of China and the Government of the Lao People's Democratic Republic on Jointly Promoting Cooperation on the Global Security Initiative.