Politics
14:36, 13-May-2017
Laos president arrives in Beijing for Belt and Road Forum
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Laos President Bounnhang Vorachith arrived in Beijing on Saturday to participate in the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, which will be held in the Chinese capital on May 14 and 15.
A total of 29 heads of state and government will attend the forum, the highest-profile international meeting on the Belt and Road Initiative since Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed it in 2013.
With access to the Mekong River, Laos' hydropower potential has earned it the nickname “Battery of Asia” and made it a magnet for investment from its neighbors, including China, which became its biggest foreign investor in 2014.
A China-Laos railway is under construction to link Yunnan Province with the Southeast Asian nation's capital Vientiane, at a cost of 7.2 billion US dollars. This is seen as a good example of the two countries' economic partnership.
25km