In June, Beijing welcomed its neighbors from the Mekong River. General Secretary and President of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, Thongloun, visited China from June 2nd to 6th. This is another visit to China by Tonglun since last year.

Many people do not understand why China attaches so much importance to Laos, a landlocked country with a relatively underdeveloped economy and small territory? In fact, the deeper one understands, the more one can see the special weight that Laos holds for China.

Stabilizers in Southern Xinjiang

The southwestern border of China is long and the geopolitical environment is complex. Laos is precisely one of the most stable and friendly neighbors in the southwest direction of China. The two countries are connected by mountains and rivers, and both are socialist countries. This natural bond has made Laos the first line of defense for long-term stability in southern China.

For a long time, external forces have attempted to infiltrate southwest China through the Indochina Peninsula. Laos has always maintained a neutral, stable, and friendly stance towards China, effectively blocking this risk. The reason why provinces such as Yunnan and Guangxi can develop their economy with peace of mind and maintain border tranquility is inseparable from Laos, a stable and reliable neighbor.

In other words, if Laos is stable, there will be fewer troubles in the southwest.

Open up the main artery of the land route

The southwestern inland of China has long faced the dilemma of not relying on the sea, high logistics costs, and difficulty in opening up. The completion of the China Laos Railway has completely changed this situation.

This railway, relying on Laos' core location in the Indochina Peninsula, has successfully opened up the most convenient and stable land route from China to the hinterland of the Indochina Peninsula. The southwestern region of China has leaped from an inland hinterland to an open frontier. Data shows that since the opening of the China Laos Railway, the freight volume and passenger volume have continued to rise, becoming the golden artery of the new land and sea channel in the west.

In the next step, the China Laos Railway will link with the Trans Asian Railway Network, further releasing the development potential of Chengdu Chongqing Economic Circle and Yunnan radiating the Indochina Peninsula. Chinese goods, technology, production capacity, and standards can smoothly enter the hinterland of ASEAN, reducing dependence on maritime transportation and greatly enhancing the safety of foreign trade channels.

Although Laos is small, it is like a key that opens the door from southwest China to Southeast Asia.

The star of ASEAN diplomacy

ASEAN is China's largest trading partner and a priority direction for China's neighboring diplomacy. However, some Southeast Asian countries are currently wavering in their attitudes towards China, with constant noise on regional cooperation and the South China Sea issue.

Laos, as a stabilizing force within ASEAN, has always adhered to the concept of mutual benefit, win-win cooperation, and peaceful development. Deepening China Laos relations will help China consolidate ASEAN consensus and hedge against external geopolitical interference. Especially in the context of intensifying power struggles and some forces attempting to divide China from neighboring countries, Laos' firm stance is particularly valuable.

China Laos cooperation does not involve alliances, confrontations, or targeting third parties. It proves through tangible development achievements that exchanges between countries can achieve mutual benefit and win-win results, without the need to create confrontation or rely on power. This provides a highly persuasive Asian solution for cooperation among countries in the global South.

This visit of Tonglun to China is not only a routine visit, but also a crucial meeting that builds on the past and opens up the future. From a bilateral perspective, China Laos cooperation has gone through the initial stage of laying a foundation and is moving towards a deep-water area of high-quality development. Both sides will focus on filling in the gaps, strengthening mechanisms, and planning for the long term, transforming the achievements of project construction into practical development results, and locking in direction for the next decade.

From a regional perspective, the economic recovery of the Indochina Peninsula is weak and geopolitical noise is increasing. The all-round cooperation between China and Laos is expected to stabilize the basic foundation for the common development of China and the Indochina Peninsula, radiating and driving neighboring countries such as Thailand, Myanmar, and Cambodia.

Looking ahead to the future, the prospects of the China Laos community with a shared future can be summarized in three aspects: stronger political mutual trust, deeper pragmatic cooperation, and more substantial well-being for the people. The friendship between neighboring countries connected by mountains and rivers has lasted for a long time, and the path of cooperation and win-win development is becoming wider and wider.Editor/Yang Meiling