Laos, Myanmar inaugurates friendship bridge

The first ever friendship bridge linking northern Laos with Myanmar across the Mekong River was officially opened to traffic on Sunday.

An inaugural ceremony was held in Lao northern Luang Namtha province on Saturday with the attendance of Lao President Choummaly Sayasone and his Myanmar counterpart Thein Sein, reported Lao state-run news agency KPL on Sunday.

Addressing the ceremony, Lao Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Thongloun Sisoulith said the opening of the bridge is a milestone in the history of friendship, close cooperation, trust and understanding of the two countries.

"I believe that this bridge will be able to contribute significantly to economic development and communication as well as strengthen the friendship and cooperation between Laos and Myanmar, " Thongloun was quoted by KPL as saying.

The governments of Laos and Myanmar reached an agreement on building the bridge during an official goodwill visit to Laos by Myanmar President Thein Sein in 2012. Construction of the bridge started in 2013, costing 26 million U.S. dollars and it had been completed by five months in advance of schedule.

Equipped with a two-lane motorway and 1.2-meter-wide sidewalks, the bridge is capable of withstanding vehicles with a maximum gross weight of 75 tons and earthquakes of up to 7.0 on the Richter scale. It was also designed to allow ships of less than 500 tons to pass underneath.

The bridge, which is 691.6 meters long and 10.9 meters wide, is a joint investment by the Lao and Myanmar governments with each side building half of the bridge.

The Laos-Myanmar Friendship Bridge is located between Houay Koum village, approximately 13-km north from Xiangkok village, Long district, Luang Namtha province of the Lao PDR, and Kenglap, Thachilek district, Shan State of Myanmar.

The bridge is expected to significantly boost trade, transport, investment, communication and tourism between the two neighbors. It will also link the countries within the Mekong sub-region, especially Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and China.