Chinese Premier Li Qiang said on Friday that China is willing to keep closer high-level exchanges with Laos, strengthen strategic communication, stay firmly on the right direction of bilateral relations, deepen all-round cooperation in all fields, and add new impetus to the steady and lasting development of the China-Laos community of shared future.
In his meeting with President of the National Assembly of Laos Saysomphone Phomvihane in Vientiane, Li said China and Laos, as friendly socialist neighbors, support each other in the struggle for national independence and liberation, and learn from each other in their respective causes of reform, opening up and innovation. "Comrades and brothers" is a vivid portrayal of the traditional friendship between the two parties and two countries, Li added.
Under the strategic guidance of Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Chinese president, and Thongloun Sisoulith, general secretary of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party Central Committee and Lao president, China-Laos relations have entered a new era of building a community with a shared future, Li noted.
China is willing to strengthen exchanges with the Lao legislative bodies, Li said, adding that he hopes the two sides will implement the cooperation agreement between the legislative bodies of the two countries, make good use of the cooperation mechanism and platform, maintain the sound momentum of exchanges between the high-level legislative bodies, special committees and bilateral friendship groups, and promote the exchange of experience in governance and legislative supervision, so as to better serve the overall interests of China-Laos relations and provide more impetus for the common development and prosperity of the two sides.
For his part, Saysomphone Phomvihane said Laos and China enjoy profound traditional friendship and sound development momentum of the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership. The Belt and Road Initiative and the three major global initiatives proposed by General Secretary Xi have been widely praised by the international community, and Laos highly appreciates and firmly supports them.
He expressed gratitude to China's long-term support for Laos' economic and social development, adding that Laos is willing to strengthen exchanges with China's legislative bodies, deepen the exchange of experience on state governance, and promote the in-depth development of Laos-China friendly and practical cooperation, so as to push for more achievements in the building of Laos-China community with a shared future.
China willing to deepen all-round cooperation in all fields with Laos: Chinese premier
China willing to deepen all-round cooperation in all fields with Laos: Chinese premier
The Israeli government is set to prohibit 37 international aid organizations from operating in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank effective Jan 1, 2026, after authorities stated the groups failed to comply with stricter registration requirements, according to an Israeli media report on Tuesday.
The report from The Times of Israel cited the statement from Israel's Ministry of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism, saying that the new regulations are based on security concerns aimed at removing non-government organizations' staff allegedly linked to so-called "terrorist organizations."
The report came after the Israeli government announced the same day that it would suspend the activities of several international aid organizations, including Doctors Without Borders, in the Gaza Strip starting January 1, 2026, citing the organizations' failure to submit information on their Palestinian staff as required.
Last year, Israel rolled out new regulations on registration requiring international aid groups to provide detailed information of their staff's names, funding sources, and operation status.
On Wednesday, Israel's Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories stated that the registration mandates were necessary to prevent humanitarian supplies from being exploited by Hamas.
In an online interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN) on Wednesday, Bushra Khalidi, policy lead at Oxfam, a global organization that fights inequality to end poverty and injustice, said the impact of the ban will be "devastating."
"It is devastating. We've seen the numbers from the IPC (Integrated Food Security Phase Classification) a few weeks ago. We saw them in the summer. There's been a slight improvement, but that's not good enough for the time of a ceasefire. And six months after the famine was declared, we should have seen much more improvement in Gaza," said Khalidi.
"It's winter here in Palestine. It was raining. It rained a record (amount) of rain per millimeter yesterday in Palestine since 1992. So, the impact is devastating. But the fact that shelter materials, for example, cannot enter. For families, this will mean slower repairs. It will mean fewer supplies. It will mean a longer wait for basic services. It will directly affect the access to clean water, to sanitation, to shelter materials, to public health interventions. Aid that should be moving predictably will remain delayed, it will remain restricted and it will remain stranded," she added.
She also emphasized that the operating environment became nearly impossible for organizations to navigate long before the new ban was announced.
"We have been obstructed and blocked from operating freely and unobstructedly for the last two years by Israel. Israel has killed a record number of humanitarian workers in the last two years. It has bombed our premises, it has bombed our convoys, it has blocked our items. It has driven famine like conditions in Gaza because of blocking humanitarian access. So, I think it's really important to set that scene, is that what is happening now is nothing new. It only continues within the kind of campaign that Israel has orchestrated to drive basically the population of Gazans' survival. So, we are, we have not been able to enter any materials in since March, in fact, us and many other organizations. And of course that has severely restricted our ability to scale up our operations," said Khalidi.
Hadja Lahbib, European Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management, said on Wednesday that Israel's move is no different from cutting off lifesaving supplies for the local population, adding that the European Union has made clear that all obstacles to humanitarian access must be lifted.
Israel bans operations of 37 int'l aid groups in Gaza Strip, West Bank
