Agra, June 2 (IANS) Laos Deputy Prime Minister Thongsavanh Phomvihane and his wife Vadsana Phomvihane visited the iconic Taj Mahal in Uttar Pradesh’s Agra on Tuesday.

Phomvihane arrived in New Delhi on Monday on a three-day official visit to India. He is set to co-chair the 10th India-Laos Joint Commission Meeting with External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar on Wednesday.

Extending a warm welcome to Laos Deputy PM on X, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated, “A warm welcome to DPM and FM Thongsavan Phomvihane of Lao PDR on his first visit to India to co-chair the 10th India-Lao PDR Joint Commission Meeting with EAM Dr S Jaishankar.”

“India and Lao PDR are celebrating 70 years of diplomatic ties. The visit will add momentum to the longstanding partnership between India-Laos and further deepen cooperation across areas of mutual interest,” he added.

Thongsavanh Phomvihane will participate in India-Lao Business Forum on Wednesday and will also call on President Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Last August, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Laos President Thongloun Sisoulith on the sidelines of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in China’s Tianjin and noted that closer friendship between two will be greatly beneficial for two nations.

“Happy to have met President of Lao PDR, Mr. Thongloun Sisoulith on the sidelines of the Tianjin SCO Summit. Closer friendship between our nations is greatly beneficial, especially ties in trade as well as culture,” PM Modi posted on X after the meeting then.

India and Laos have historical and civilisational links reflected in common heritage of Buddhism and Ramakien (Ramayana). Bilateral relations between India and Laos have been long-standing, friendly and mutually supportive since diplomatic relations were established in 1956. According to the MEA, institutional consultative mechanisms include Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) and Joint Commission Meeting (JCM). The third FOC was held in Vientiane in 2023 while the 9th JCM was held in Vientiane in 2018.

–IANS

akl/as