Vietnam-Laos highway opens to traffic
(VOV) - National Highway 2E linking Vietnam and Laos was officially inaugurated at the Panghok international border of Phongsaly province on February 23.
Addressing the ceremony, Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc affirmed the traditional friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation relations between the two countries.
The highway has a strategic importance for both Vietnam and Laos, said Phuc, adding that it will further boost the exchange between the two countries in general, and between Vietnam’s northwestern provinces and Laos’ northern provinces in particular.
For his part, Lao Deputy Prime Minister Somsavat Lengsavad stressed the importance of the road as a priority in Laos’ socio-economic development. He said the road will contribute to improving Laos’ infrastructure, and serve as Laos’ transit road to other countries in the region.
The highway, linking Khoa district in Phongsaly province of Laos to the Tay Trang border gate in Dien Bien province, stretches 68.2 kilometres. The project, the second of its kind financed by the Vietnamese government in Laos, has total investment of US$43 million.