On the afternoon of August 9, 2021, within the framework of President Nguyen Xuan Phuc's visit to Laos, Minister Nguyen Hong Dien visited and worked with the Lao Minister of Industry and Trade at the headquarters of the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

At the meeting, the two Ministers emphasized the importance of the traditional friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and Laos; affirmed that officials of the two ministries always consider each other as comrades.

In the field of trade, the two Ministers were pleased to see that the bilateral trade turnover has regained its positive growth momentum in the first 6 months of 2021, creating a solid foundation for the two ministries to complete the target of 10% trade turnover growth in 2021 that the senior leaders of the two countries have set out in the cooperation plan between the two governments in 2021. Minister Nguyen Hong Dien highly appreciated the development steps in the production and export capacity of Laos. In the first half of 2021, Laos had a surplus of exports to Vietnam and exports have diversified, no longer focusing on minerals and wood as before (now expanding to rubber, fertilizer, and vegetables).

In order to maintain the momentum of trade growth, Minister Nguyen Hong Dien emphasized the importance of the two ministries' coordination in monitoring, exchanging information and promoting the two countries' functional agencies to maintain the epidemic prevention clearance model at land border gates between Vietnam and Laos, preventing the movement of goods affected or interrupted by the COVID-19 epidemic. In the spirit of ensuring no disruption to the supply chain of goods during the COVID-19 epidemic, Minister Nguyen Hong Dien thanked the Lao Minister of Industry and Trade for responding to the request of the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade to cancel the suspension order. seafood imports from Vietnam in April 2021.

Regarding the completion and implementation of the legal framework on trade between the two countries, the two sides agreed to speed up the negotiation of the 2015 Vietnam-Laos Trade Agreement Amendment Agreement to soon be completed and signed in 2021; promote the relevant agencies of both countries to fully implement the commitments of the Vietnam - Laos Border Trade Agreement.

In addition, Minister Nguyen Hong Dien also emphasized the meaning and necessity of planning and building the Hanoi - Vientiane expressway, considering this as an economic space to accelerate, promote, expand the bilateral trade flows as well as serving as a basis for Vietnam's Ministry of Industry and Trade to encourage and support many Vietnamese businesses to invest in Laos in order to maximize the potential of the relationship between the two countries.

Minister Nguyen Hong Dien said that the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam will organize a conference on economic development in border areas with the participation of 25 border provinces of Vietnam in August 2021 to remove difficulties and obstacles and propose breakthrough mechanisms and policies for the sustainable economic development of the border area. The Minister proposed that the Lao Ministry of Industry and Trade together with the border provinces of Laos organize the review, grasp the difficulties and obstacles, propose solutions for economic development in the border area on the Lao side. If the two sides work together to do this, it will create conditions for optimal coordination of resources of the two countries in the development of the border area between Vietnam and Laos.

The two Ministers agreed to assign the focal units of the two ministries (on the side of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam, the Asia-Africa Market Department) to continue to closely coordinate, regularly communicate, review difficulties, problems in the field of the economy - trade to promptly report to the two Ministers for direction and handling.

On this occasion, Minister Nguyen Hong Dien invited Minister Kham Pheng Xaxompheng to visit and work in Vietnam as soon as possible when conditions allow for the two sides to organize the Conference on Cooperation and Development of Industry, Trade - Energy and Mining Vietnam - Laos in Vietnam. This is an important annual cooperation mechanism, creating a basis for the two sides to strengthen cohesion, close and effective cooperation in order to further developing the multifaceted bilateral cooperation relationship between Vietnam and Laos, fulfilling the tasks assigned by the senior leaders./.