VIENTIANE, April 11 (Xinhua) -- The fight against the COVID-19 pandemic shows the importance and urgency of building a community with a shared future for mankind, an official at the Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP) has said.
Since the outbreak of COVID-19, countries around the world have suffered from tremendous losses, which have caused huge economic, social and political impacts, Sounthone Xayachack, head of the LPRP Central Committee's commission for external relations, told Xinhua in an interview on Thursday.
In order to control the spread of the disease, many countries have proactively implemented prevention and control measures, and some have achieved satisfactory results, especially those achieved by China, said Sounthone.
"This pandemic is a painful lesson of humanity, and it has also proved to the world that the Chinese proposal of advancing the building of a community with a shared future for mankind is important and urgent," said Sounthone.
The experience and lessons of many countries show that a single person, or a single society, cannot overcome this pandemic, and "the best way to overcome the disease is the cooperation of governments around the world, working together to effectively control the disease and achieve victory," she said.
Laos reported its first two confirmed COVID-19 cases on March 24, and only in five days, a Chinese anti-epidemic medical expert team arrived in its capital Vientiane.
"We are increasingly aware of the need for cooperation among countries," she said. "Although China needs to continue the fight against COVID-19 and resume work and production, it still provides assistance to more than 80 countries around the world which are suffering from the disease."
"On the contrary, there are politicians in some countries, with bias on ideology and ethnicity, accusing of and defaming other countries as their opinionated enemies," Sounthone said. "This is obviously unreasonable."
"The most urgent and necessary thing at present is to jointly take intense and strict measures to control the spread of the disease, to make known the danger of the virus, to improve global health systems, and to ensure the provision of medical supplies in developing countries or less developed countries," she said.
Laos is grateful for the help from countries with virus prevention and control experience, said Sounthone. "In particular, we highly appreciate China's assistance of sending a medical expert team to Laos and the provision of necessary medical supplies."
"Currently, the Chinese expert team is collaborating with local Lao authorities to share experience on virus prevention and control measures," she said.
The Chinese anti-epidemic medical expert team, divided into two groups, embarked on a three-day trip starting Tuesday to cooperate with local Lao governments and medical staff in its southern and northern hubs of Pakse and Luang Prabang.
"This is a vivid example of the spirit of the Laos-China community with a shared future, which is characterized by sticking together and helping each other through thick and thin," she said.
She said she firmly believes that they will jointly respond to and prevail over the COVID-19 pandemic, and help the two peoples' lives return to normal as soon as possible.
"The cooperation between the Lao People's Revolutionary Party and the Communist Party of China embodies the consistent ideology of the two parties, that is to serve the people with heart and soul, to always benefit the people's livelihood, and to always put the interests of the people in the first place," said Sounthone.
The cooperation between the Lao and Chinese parties in the fight against COVID-19 can be "an example of comprehensive cooperation among countries in the world," she said.
