Laos President, Japan PM pledge stronger links as two nations mark 70-year ties
TOKYO: Visiting President Thongloun Sisoulith and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba have agreed to deepen ties as Laos and Japan this year celebrate 70 years of diplomatic relations and 60 years of Japanese volunteer missions to Laos.
The two leaders pledged to deepen ties during a bilateral meeting held in Tokyo on Thursday (May 29) on the sidelines of the 30th International Conference on the Future of Asia, hosted by Nikkei Inc. The Lao President also delivered a speech at the conference.
Welcoming President Thongloun to Japan, Prime Minister Ishiba expressed 'his intention to further develop the bilateral cooperation by realising the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership', the Prime Minister's Office of Japan said on its website.
PM Ishiba said Japan would continue to support Laos' efforts to strengthen its economic resilience and stabilise its public finances for autonomous and quality economic development.
At the same time, President Thongloun announced that starting on June 1, 2025, Laos will extend the visa-free stay period for holders of ordinary Japanese passports from 15 days to 30 days to enhance people-to-people and cultural links.
President Thongloun and PM Ishiba reflected on the elevation of Lao-Japanese relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership following Lao Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone's official visit to Japan in January.
They pledged to intensify collaboration in areas of mutual interest, particularly by promoting Japanese investment in key sectors in Laos.
The two leaders agreed to accelerate efforts towards the early conclusion of a tax convention, with a view to further enhancing investment and economic ties between the two countries.
They also declared their intention to advance cooperation in the fields of energy and decarbonisation under the Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC) initiative.
President Thongloun said 'he was pleased with the development of bilateral relations in a wide range of areas,' the Prime Minister's Office of Japan said.
It was also noted that Japanese volunteers have made a significant contribution to Laos' development.
To date, more than 1,100 Japanese volunteers and 4,500 experts have served in Laos, assisting their Lao counterparts in areas such as legal reform, justice, and public service.
The leaders also expressed their pleasure at the upcoming official visit to Laos by Her Imperial Highness, Princess Aiko, in November, calling it a significant milestone for future bilateral engagement.
President Thongloun expressed his appreciation for the warm hospitality extended to himself and his delegation and thanked Japan for its continued support for Laos' socio-economic development.
Japan's assistance extends to development of the East-West Economic Corridor, clearance of unexploded ordnance (UXO), disaster preparedness, and humanitarian assistance.
The two leaders also exchanged views on key regional and international advancements and underscored their shared commitment to peace, prosperity, and inclusive development in the Asia-Pacific region. - Vientiane Times/ANN
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
QRIS launches in Japan as trial begins for expansion to China
QRIS was launched in Japan on Indonesia's 80th independence anniversary, marking its first expansion beyond Asean. — The Jakarta Post JAKARTA: Bank Indonesia (BI) is preparing to roll out the Quick Response Indonesia Standard (QRIS) in China, following its recent launch in Japan, as it seeks to expand the national digital payment system beyond Asean. QRIS was launched in Japan on Indonesia's 80th independence anniversary, marking its first expansion beyond Asean, where the payment service is officially available in Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore so far, with plans for further expansion. In its initial rollout in Japan, QRIS debuted 35 merchants, enabling Indonesians to make transactions by scanning JPQR Global using local payment apps. Going forward, the central bank said that it planned to further expand QRIS coverage in Japan to make transactions easier for Indonesian users. At the same time, a reciprocal implementation of system compatibility is to allow Japanese visitors to make transactions at merchants in Indonesia by scanning QRIS codes with their domestic payment apps. 'Since its launch six years ago, QRIS has become a game-changer for the digital payment ecosystem and strengthened Indonesia's economic sovereignty. It has now reached 57 million users,' BI governor Perry Warjiyo said during the launch of QRIS in Japan on Sunday. BI announced its collaboration with the People's Bank of China to begin an 'interconnection trial' between the two countries ahead of its planned expansion to China. The initiative is set to facilitate bilateral trade, particularly for micro, small and medium enterprises, while also supporting growth in tourism. The trial involves the Indonesian Payment System Association, China's UnionPay International and representatives of payment system providers. The Indonesian central bank said in April that four local payment service providers, PT Rintis Sejahtera, PT Alto Network, PT Artajasa Pembayaran Elektronis and PT Jalin Pembayaran Nusantara, had an agreement with UnionPay International to create a secure testing environment, or sandbox. QRIS went online in 2019 to streamline QR codes across digital payment systems, allowing transactions through a variety of platforms, from mobile banking apps to e-wallets. BI has since expanded QRIS' regional reach by linking it to corresponding systems in Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. As of June this year, Malaysia recorded the highest number of QRIS transactions at 4.31 million, which amounted to a volume of 1.15 trillion rupiah since its launch in May 2023. Thailand followed with 994,890 transactions worth 437.54 billion rupiah since August 2022, while Singapore booked 238,216 transactions valued at 77.06 billion rupiah since November 2023. BI is also looking at a possible deployment of QRIS in India and Saudi Arabia. Due to increasing adoption among both consumers and merchants, the transaction volume of digital payments using QRIS grew 148.5% year-on-year to 6.1 billion transactions in the first half of this year. QRIS previously hit the headlines after the United States cited it among what it claimed were non-tariff barriers to trade and which it used to justify slapping steep import tariffs on Indonesian goods shipped to the United States. The US Trade Representative's 2025 National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers said Indonesia had not apprised US payment providers and banks of its new payment standard during the development phase. In response, BI senior deputy governor Destry Damayanti said in April that Indonesia's partnerships in cross-border digital payment systems were based on the readiness of other countries, adding that the use of US-based payment system Visa and Mastercard 'remain dominant' in Indonesia. — The Jakarta Post/ANN
Barnama
13 hours ago
- Barnama
Ringgit Rises Against Major Currencies, Eases Vs US Dollar
WORLD By Zufazlin Baharuddin KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 20 (Bernama) -- The ringgit appreciated against most major currencies but eased slightly against the greenback at the close on Wednesday amid cautious market sentiments ahead of the release of the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting minutes later tonight. At 6 pm, the local note dipped to 4.2250/2290 against the US dollar from yesterday's close of 4.2215/2255. Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said that apart from the minutes, comments by senior US central bank officials will also come into focus after the release of the FOMC details. 'Markets are anxious about whether the US Federal Reserve (Fed) will deliver a 25 basis points interest rate cut in the upcoming FOMC meeting,' he told Bernama. Afzanizam said last week's US consumer price index and producer price index dynamics suggested that the Fed might continue to focus on inflation, but noted that the weak labour market warranted additional monetary stimulus. In addition, the market sentiment will stay guarded ahead of policy signals from the Fed's Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium later this week. At the close, the ringgit settled mostly higher against a basket of major currencies. It gained versus the euro to 4.9196/9242 from 4.9307/9354 yesterday and inched up against the British pound to 5.7033/7087 from 5.7066/7120, but dropped vis-à-vis the Japanese yen to 2.8648/8677 from 2.8572/8601. The ringgit also traded mostly higher against other ASEAN currencies. It gained versus the Singapore dollar to 3.2864/2898 from 3.2901/2935 at Tuesday's close, strengthened against the Thai baht to 12.9756/9935 from 12.9848/13.0027 and inched up vis-à-vis the Indonesian rupiah to 259.6/260.0 from 259.8/260.2. However, it slid against the Philippine peso to 7.41/7.42 from 7.39/7.40 yesterday.
The Star
13 hours ago
- The Star
Ringgit rises against major currencies, eases vs US dollar
KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit appreciated against most major currencies but eased slightly against the greenback at the close on Wednesday amid cautious market sentiments ahead of the release of the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting minutes later tonight. At 6 pm, the local note dipped to 4.2250/2290 against the US dollar from yesterday's close of 4.2215/2255. Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said that apart from the minutes, comments by senior US central bank officials will also come into focus after the release of the FOMC details. "Markets are anxious about whether the US Federal Reserve (Fed) will deliver a 25 basis points interest rate cut in the upcoming FOMC meeting,' he told Bernama. Afzanizam said last week's US consumer price index and producer price index dynamics suggested that the Fed might continue to focus on inflation, but noted that the weak labour market warranted additional monetary stimulus. In addition, the market sentiment will stay guarded ahead of policy signals from the Fed's Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium later this week. At the close, the ringgit settled mostly higher against a basket of major currencies. It gained versus the euro to 4.9196/9242 from 4.9307/9354 yesterday and inched up against the British pound to 5.7033/7087 from 5.7066/7120, but dropped vis-à-vis the Japanese yen to 2.8648/8677 from 2.8572/8601. The ringgit also traded mostly higher against other ASEAN currencies. It gained versus the Singapore dollar to 3.2864/2898 from 3.2901/2935 at Tuesday's close, strengthened against the Thai baht to 12.9756/9935 from 12.9848/13.0027 and inched up vis-à-vis the Indonesian rupiah to 259.6/260.0 from 259.8/260.2. However, it slid against the Philippine peso to 7.41/7.42 from 7.39/7.40 yesterday. - Bernama
