Laos-European countries relations

Since 1997, Laos and European countries have continuously practiced their relationship for enhancing cooperation between them. The relation is based on the Cooperation Agreement between the European Union (EU) and the Lao People’s Democratic Republic.37 In addition, Laos and its European partners (the European Union, the Member States of the European Union and Switzerland) have set their long-term cooperation plan namely European Joint Indicative Programming Document for Lao People’s Democratic Republic 2016-2020. According to this cooperation plan, they will strengthen their relationship on more specified sectors, for example agriculture, education, environment, governance, health and private sector development.38 These sectors are prioritized for Laos’s national development because they are not encouraged enough. Agriculture is a main sector contributing to the national economy. In order to maintain the development in the long run, people need to be educated and healthy, the environment need to be protected, the government must support the development by providing supporting laws, policies and ruling system. The private sector needs to be encouraged to contribute more in economic development. With an assistance of the European Union, as a development partner, Laos’s development will be boosted faster. One thing that affects relationship between countries is their foreign policies. In this paper, it is not only foreign policies of Laos and European Union will be studied, but also their political, economic and diplomatic relations. Especially, the relationship of Laos-EU, Laos-ASEAN and ASEAN-EU will be specified as well