Vietnam border, seas, islands

Vietnam and Laos will focus on cooperation in border management in 2018 in line with the two newly signed border agreements and other joint projects relating to border affairs.

The two sides agreed to complete the designing of a master plan on developing Vietnam - Lao border gates system by 2025 with a vision towards 2035, during the 27th annual Vietnam - Laos border meeting held in Hanoi on December 9.

At the meeting, which aims to seek orientations for border cooperation in 2018, both sides reviewed their coordination in border issues as well as their affiliation in implementing bilateral border and territory agreement in 2017.

They held that so far this year, the political stability and security as well as social order and safety along the shared border have been ensured.

The two sides have supported the growth of border areas in all fields, contributing to reinforcing and strengthening ties between the two countries in general and among border localities in particular, they said.

They also showed their delight at the signing of two legal documents on border cooperation – a protocol on borderline and national border markers, and an agreement on land border and border gate management regulations, which became effective since September 5, 2017.

Within the meeting’s framework, a number of thematic meetings among Vietnamese and Lao localities were also held to remove obstacles facing them in the implementation of an agreement between the two governments on dealing with free migration and undocumented marriage along the shared border.

They will also work together to effectively conduct the agreement on settling issues related to free migration and undocumented marriage in border areas.

Both sides agreed to organise the 28th meeting in Laos in the fourth quarter of 2018.

The Vietnamese delegation was headed by Deputy Foreign Minister and head of the National Border Committee Le Hoai Trung, while the Lao side was led by Foreign Minister Saleumxay Kommasith.

The Vietnam-Laos borderline stretches as far as nearly 2,337km, through 10 Vietnamese and 10 Lao provinces, running north to south – the longest land border Vietnam shares with a neighbouring country.

On July 18, 1977, Vietnam and Laos concluded negotiations and signed the Convention on National Border Demarcation.

Accordingly, from 1978 - 1987, both sides basically completed border demarcation in the field and settled emerging issues such as the transfer of land, people and assets in line with international law. The results were hailed in the Supplementary Treaty to the 1976 Treaty on National Boundary Delimination signed on January 24, 1986 and the Protocol on border demarcation in the field and border marker planting inked on January 24, 1986 and the supplementary Protocol to the Protocol on border demarcation in the field and border marker planting signed on October 16, 1987.

Since 1987, the two sides have devised a digital Vietnam-Laos national map at a scale of 1:50,000, dealt with all discrepancies in borderline, border markers and border sections, signed the Vietnam – Laos – China and Vietnam – Laos – Cambodia border conventions.

From 2008-2016, the two countries partnered to implement the project on increasing and upgrading Vietnam - Laos border markers. There are now 1,002 border markers and posts at 905 positions, which are specified in the Protocol on Vietnam – Laos borderline and border markers signed on March 16, 2016.

Regarding main contents of two Vietnam – Laos legal documents which took effect on September 5, 2017, the Protocol on Vietnam – Laos borderline and border markers signed on March 16, 2016 featured the outcomes of border demarcation and marker planting from 1977 - 1987, the settlement of several demarcation differences and the implementation of a project on increasing and upgrading Vietnam - Laos border markers for 2008-2016.-VNA