President Thongloun Sisoulith (right) welcoming Indonesian President-elect Prabowo Subianto in Vientiane on Sept 6, 2024. - VT
VIENTIANE: Indonesian President-elect Prabowo Subianto paid a working visit to Laos and met with President Thongloun Sisoulith on Sept 6 to introduce himself to Laos, the chair of Asean for 2024.
The introduction comes ahead of his swearing in as the President of the Republic of Indonesia, which is scheduled to take place on Oct 20.
Laos, which inherited the Asean Chair from Indonesia at the beginning of this year, will host the Asean Summits and related summits in the same month.
The visit of the President-elect, who will replace President Joko Widodo, aimed to cement bilateral ties between Laos and Indonesia after their formal establishment more than six decades ago, as well as promoting cooperation within the Asean framework and beyond.
Welcoming Prabowo at the National Assembly, President Thongloun expressed confidence that his visit to Laos will greatly enhance Laos-Indonesia relations and cooperation, the Lao Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a press release.
The Lao leader congratulated the president-elect on winning the Indonesian presidential election in February, making him the 8th President of Indonesia.
President Thongloun also took this opportunity, on behalf of the Lao people, to congratulate him on the 79th Indonesian National Day, which was celebrated on Aug 17.
The Lao leader conveyed his warmest greeting to President Joko Widodo.
During their talks, the leaders exchanged views on bilateral relations and said they highly valued the time-honoured ties that have strengthened over the years.
The two countries have provided reciprocal assistance and support in the regional and international arenas, the Lao ministry noted, and their leaders took this opportunity to exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest. From 2019 to June this year, the value of two-way trade between the two South-East Asian countries surpassed US$188.4 million.
The two leaders discussed ways to boost trade and investment, leveraging areas of potential such as agriculture, tourism, mining, services and more.
The Lao side encouraged more Indonesian investors to set up business operations in Laos.
President Thongloun briefed his guests on the progress of Laos’ Asean chairmanship, which takes the theme “Asean: Enhancing Connectivity and Resilience”, underscoring the importance of expanding connectivity to promote common development and make the region more resilient in dealing with the challenges it faces.
Nine priorities have been defined to push forward fulfilment of the theme, aiming not only to ensure the Asean community is able to cope with challenges, but also to seize opportunities amid the changing geopolitical and geoeconomic landscape.
Under its chairmanship, Laos is leading the group to strengthen the Asean community, building on the success and progress made when spearheaded by Indonesia’s chairmanship of the regional grouping in 2023, President Thongloun told the guests.
The Lao leader thanked the Indonesian government for its assistance to Laos, including providing 130 bachelor and master’s degree scholarships as well as various training sessions for Lao students and government officials.
President Thongloun also thanked Indonesia for the country’s support and assistance for Laos’ Asean chairmanship, including the provision of US$1 million to finance the hosting of the upcoming 44th and 45th Asean Summits and related summits.
For his part, the Indonesian president-elect thanked the Lao leader for the warm hospitality extended to his delegation and briefed him on the purpose of his visit.
On the same day, the Indonesian president-elect also called on Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone at the Prime Minister’s Office. - Vientiane Times/ANN
