PM Modi holds bilateral talks with Lao PDR counterpart

Prime Minister Narendra Modi held bilateral talks with his Laos counterpart Sonexay Siphandone in Vientiane on Friday.

The two nations inked agreements in the field of defence, broadcasting and Customs cooperation in the presence of the state heads.

The two leaders discussed several avenues of enhancing bilateral cooperation in fields like capacity building, disaster management, renewable energy, heritage restoration, economic ties, defence collaboration, and people-to-people ties. They also discussed strengthening India-Laos civilisational and contemporary ties.

They also noted that the ongoing restoration and conservation of Vat Phou, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, under Indian assistance from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) imparts a special dimension to bilateral ties.

PM Modi congratulated Lao PDR counterpart on successfully hosting the 21st ASEAN-India and 19th East Asia Summits. The Laos PM expressed gratefulness for India's flood relief assistance, in the aftermath of Typhoon Yagi.

Besides MoUs, three Quick Impact Projects (QIPs) under the Mekong-Ganga Cooperation were also exchanged in the presence of two leaders. The QIPs relate to the preservation of the heritage of Lao Ramayan, the restoration of Wat Pakea Buddhist temple with murals related to Ramayan, and support to shadow puppetry theatre on Ramayan in Champasak province.

All three QIPs have a provision for grant assistance of about USD 50000 each. Besides, India will also provide grant assistance of about USD 1 million to improve nutrition security in Lao PDR.

Earlier addressing the 19th East Asia Summit, PM Modi stressed on ASEAN's central role in the Indo-Pacific region and said that India's participation in the East Asia Summit was an important pillar of its Act East Policy.

PM Modi also met Thailand PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra on the sidelines of the East Asia Summit in Vientiane. This was the first meeting between the two Prime Ministers.