Rosatom noted Laos' interest in non-energy applications of the atom

Laos has shown substantive interest in cooperation with Russia in the nuclear field, especially in non-energy applications such as nuclear medicine. This was stated by the head of Rosatom, Alexey Likhachev, answering a question from a correspondent of Izvestia.

"In recent months, this work has been extremely intensified. Moreover, this acceleration took place precisely on the initiative of the Lao People's Democratic Republic. [Lao colleagues] were very interested in small plants, and they were very interested in non—energy applications, primarily nuclear medicine, cancer control, and agricultural work," he said.

According to Likhachev, this issue had already been discussed at consultations in 2016, when the first memoranda were signed, but later the pandemic and the international situation "left their fingerprints" on the implementation of these works. The head of the organization added that the work has not stopped, specifying that recently this process has even accelerated at the initiative of Laos.

Likhachev also noted that during the meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Lao President Thonglong Sisoulit, the format of cooperation between the countries for the implementation of this cooperation, in particular, financing, was discussed. He also stressed that trusting relations have developed between the heads of state.

"Not only the technical aspect is important, but also the financial models of cooperation. Well, you probably saw from the dialogue between the presidents how friendly and trusting the relations between them are. We just have to strengthen these relations with our work," Likhachev summed up.

Putin's talks with the President of Laos in the Kremlin took place earlier in the day. As the Russian leader noted, last year the trade turnover between the two countries increased by 66% and by another 20% since the beginning of this year. The Russian President called Laos a close friend of the Russian Federation, adding that the support of Laos from the USSR is a powerful foundation for relations between Moscow and Vientiane today.

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