Photo : YONHAP News
South Korea and Laos have agreed to upgrade their bilateral relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership next year to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the reestablishment of their diplomatic ties.
President Yoon Suk Yeol and Lao President Thongloun Sisoulith made the agreement on Thursday during their summit talks held on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations(ASEAN) summit in Laos.
Yoon expressed hope that South Korea and Laos will upgrade their relations to a higher level next year when they commemorate the 30th anniversary of reestablishing their diplomatic ties, saying that the two nations have steadily developed friendly cooperative relations since the reestablishment in 1995.
The president added that the number of mutual visitors is expected to surpass the levels seen before COVID-19 and hit an all-time high this year.
The Laotian president said that Yoon’s visit to Laos will significantly contribute to improving cooperative relations between the two nations.
The two countries signed memoranda of understanding on cooperation for climate change response and carbon emission reductions, and renewed the basic agreement for South Korea’s economic development cooperation fund with Laos.