Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

On behalf of the United States of America, I congratulate the people of Laos on the occasion of the 46th anniversary of the founding of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic.

We were honored this year to commemorate the fifth anniversary of our Comprehensive Partnership, which former President Obama first launched in 2016.  Our partnership is based on mutual respect, a shared commitment to Lao sovereignty, and the centrality of ASEAN.

We are proud of the strong people-to-people ties that exist between our countries, and our Comprehensive Partnership reflects the United States’ strong commitment to work with Laos to achieve progress in many areas, including health, education, rule of law, economic development, law enforcement, and trade.