In just a few days, the Long Sap international border gate, Son La province - Pa Hang, Hua Phan province, Lao PDR will officially open.
These days, in Son La province, preparations for the groundbreaking ceremony are being made urgently. This is the first international border gate in Son La province to be put into operation.
The ceremony to announce the opening of the Long Sap - Pa Hang international border gate will be held on a national scale on November 19, co-organized and co-chaired by Son La province and Hua Phan province at the national border marker 255 of the Long Sap border gate border guard station, Moc Chau district.
This is the first international border gate in Son La province, bringing with it many expectations of opening up more economic development opportunities in the Northwest region.
Talking about the expectations for the first international border gate in Son La, Ms. Trang Thi Xuan - Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee shared that after upgrading to an international border gate, the goal of Son La province is to turn the Long Sap border gate area into a center for border gate services, tourism, finance, trade, and border services, with a synchronous and modern infrastructure system.
The Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Son La province emphasized that the opening ceremony of the international border gate is an opportunity to promote international cooperation, economic integration, introduce and promote the potential of Son La province and call for investment.
On November 12, speaking with reporters, Colonel Vu Duc Tu - Deputy Political Commissar of the Son La Provincial Border Guard Command said that when upgrading to an international border gate, according to legal regulations and agreements between the two sides, entry, exit and import and export will be expanded.
Accordingly, people, vehicles, and goods from third countries, such as Thailand, China, Myanmar, etc., can pass through, transit, intermodal, temporarily import, and re-export; at the same time, it is an opportunity to promote economic development in the Northwest region as well as the border area here, especially when the Hoa Binh - Moc Chau expressway is completed.
According to the leader of Son La Border Guard, foreign affairs and diplomacy activities of the Party, State and authorities at all levels also have many advantages and the promotion of the country, culture and people of Vietnam to third countries has also been expanded.
"This will open up opportunities for border economic development and cross-border tourism development, especially for the Moc Chau area - which has been honored for many consecutive years as the world's leading natural destination," added Colonel Vu Duc Tu.
Previously, on December 22, 2020, the Government issued Resolution No. 182/NQ-CP on upgrading Long Sap main border gate, Son La province into an international border gate.
On December 31, 2020, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent a diplomatic note to the Lao side notifying that the Vietnamese Government had decided to upgrade the main Long Sap border gate into an international border gate and requested the Lao side to soon upgrade the main Pa Hang border gate, Hua Phan province into an international border gate.
Long Sap border gate is located in Long Sap commune, Moc Chau district, Son La province, opposite is the main Pa Hang border gate, Sop Bau district, Hua Phan province.
The border gate was recorded in the Vietnam - Laos Border Regulation Agreement signed on March 1, 1990 with the original name of the Pa Hang - Sop Bau border gate pair; in 2005, it was renamed the main Long Sap - Pa Hang border gate pair. The two countries have placed the 255-meter marker at the intersection between the traffic route and the border line in the border gate area.
The border gate is about 210 km from Hanoi capital, about 150 km from Son La city; more than 700 km from Vientiane capital and the Friendship border gate between Laos and Thailand.
The border gate is located at a key socio-economic position, connecting the Northwest with the capital Hanoi, convenient for transit, exit, entry, export and import of people, vehicles and goods from China, Thailand and Myanmar to Vietnam.
