Laos to become the 29th member state of CICA - PHOTO

Laos has signed the founding documents of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA), taking a key step toward joining the organization. Once the decision is approved, the number of CICA member states will reach 29.

According to Report, citing Azerbaijan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the signing ceremony took place today in Baku.

It was attended by Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Laos Thongsavanh Phomvihane, CICA Secretary General Kairat Sarybay, and a representative of Kazakhstan's Foreign Ministry, which serves as the depositary of the organization's founding documents.

During the ceremony, the head of the Laotian Foreign Ministry signed the Declaration on the Principles Guiding Relations between the CICA Member States of September 14, 1999, and the Almaty Act of June 4, 2022.

Jeyhun Bayramov, Thongsavanh Phomvihane, and Kairat Sarybay spoke at the event, emphasizing the significance of this decision for the organization. They congratulated Laos and expressed their best wishes in connection with its upcoming accession to the organization.

The final decision on Laos' membership is scheduled to be approved on October 15 at the 7th CICA Summit in Baku.