Laos, Myanmar deepen cooperation

Laos and Myanmar have agreed to deepen cooperation in a broad range of fields and build the first
Mekong Friendship Bridge between the two countries to spur trade at both the bilateral and regional
levels.

The agreement was reached March 22, 2012 as

Myanmar President U Thein Sein arrived in Vientiane
for a two-day state visit to Laos in response to an
invitation from his Lao counterpart Choummaly
Sayasone.

In their bilateral talks, the two presidents reached

consensus on the need to reopen direct flights
between Vientiane and either Yangon or Nay Pyi Taw
in the near future to facilitate cooperation and boost tourism; agreed on the need to work together further
to maintain security to ensure a border of peace, friendship and joint development for the wellbeing of the
two peoples and also accorded that both sides should cooperate in agriculture to meet the growing
demand for food.

President Choummaly proposed that both sides strengthen the role of the joint commission on bilateral
cooperation to create a mechanism to boost trade and investment between the two neighbors, which
importantly both sides should push towards realizing the construction of the Friendship Bridge and also
boost cooperation in industries in which Laos and Myanmar have investment potential, such as mining
and agriculture. He called for increased cooperation in the sphere education, including the exchange of
scholarships and training to transfer know-how among both sides' technical staff in various fields
reconfirmed that Lao will support Myanmar to join the Mekong River Commission as a permanent
member and support for Myanmar's roadmap to create national conciliation.

In addition, the Lao government also threw its support behind Myanmar's future contributions in the
regional and international arenas, especially its planned hosting of the South East Asia Games next year
and presidency of Asean in 2014.

President Choummaly informed his guest that Laos is preparing to host the 9th ASEM Summit in
Vientiane in November and invited President U Thein Sein to attend the meeting.

For his part, President U Thein Sein thanked the Lao government and people for their support in the
regional and international arenas, and advised that Myanmar is preparing for a bi-election on April 1. He
expressed heartfelt thanks to the government and people of Laos for the welcome extended to him and his
delegation.

Both sides hailed the growing friendly relations between the two countries as bringing benefit to both
peoples; congratulated each other on the progress of their respective countries in improving the living
conditions of their peoples and also agreed to maintain regular contact and conduct exchange visits of
leaders.

Lao Embassy in Washington, DC, March 28, 2012