U.S. President Barack Obama arrived in Laos Monday for a three-day visit to the Southeast Asian country. His visit shows how far Laos has stepped out of the shadows of its larger, influential neighbors, China and Vietnam. Since the days of French colonial rule in Southeast Asia, Vietnam has influenced Laos, both culturally and politically. The Communist Party came to power in Laos during the Vietnam War. By the time of the 1975 communist revolution, most party officials had spent time in Vietnam. Many of them even spoke the Vietnamese language. Nguyen Ngoc Truong is a former Vietnamese diplomat. He now directs a foreign policy research center. He says Vietnam’s government now considers Laos a very important neighbor. Yet some observers would say China’s government has more influence than Vietnam.
Title: Laos Struggles Between China, Vietnam
Content: <div id='article-page'><div id='article-content' data-media-url='//news-app-staging.s3.amazonaws.com' data-base-url='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/laos_struggles.m4a' data-capture-url='//staging.analytics.lingraphica.com/events/capture_news' data-article-title='Laos Struggles Between China, Vietnam' data-article-id='1849'><script src='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com/javascripts/getscripts.js'></script><link rel='stylesheet' href='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com/stylesheets/article.css' type='text/css' /><div class='article'><p><span data-start-time='0' data-end-time='12646'>U.S. President Barack Obama arrived in Laos Monday for a three-day visit to the Southeast Asian country.</span> <span data-start-time='12646' data-end-time='26729'>His visit shows how far Laos has stepped out of the shadows of its larger, influential neighbors, China and Vietnam.</span> <span data-start-time='26729' data-end-time='41521'>Since the days of French colonial rule in Southeast Asia, Vietnam has influenced Laos, both culturally and politically.</span> <span data-start-time='41521' data-end-time='48813'>The Communist Party came to power in Laos during the Vietnam War.</span> <span data-start-time='48813' data-end-time='61313'>By the time of the 1975 communist revolution, most party officials had spent time in Vietnam. </span> <span data-start-time='61313' data-end-time='67167'>Many of them even spoke the Vietnamese language.</span> <span data-start-time='67167' data-end-time='73333'>Nguyen Ngoc Truong is a former Vietnamese diplomat.</span> <span data-start-time='73333' data-end-time='78875'>He now directs a foreign policy research center.</span> <span data-start-time='78875' data-end-time='87938'>He says Vietnam’s government now considers Laos a very important neighbor.</span> <span data-start-time='87938' data-end-time='97125'>Yet some observers would say China’s government has more influence than Vietnam.</span> </p></div><div class='control-buttons-sticky' style='display:none;'><div class='control-buttons'><button title='Back' class='back' disabled='disabled'></button><button title='Play' class='play' disabled='disabled'></button><button title='Pause' class='pause' style='display:none;'></button><button title='Forward' class='forward' disabled='disabled'></button><button class='finished-reading' style='display:none;'>Done</button></div></div></div><div id='article-media'><div id='media-image'><img src='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/laos_struggles.jpg'/></div></div><div id='question-content' style='display:none;'><div class='vocabulary_question question-container' data-question-id=7123 data-hint-location='67167' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/what_does_diplomat_mean.m4a'>What does diplomat mean?</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='an official representing a country abroad'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/a_rule_or_law.m4a'><span>a rule or law</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/a_type_of_celebrity.m4a'><span>a type of celebrity</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/an_official_representing_a_country_abroad.m4a'><span>an official representing a country abroad</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/a_movie_star.m4a'><span>a movie star</span></div></div></div><div class='multiple_choice_question question-container' data-question-id=7124 data-hint-location='41521' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/which_party_came_to_power_during_the_vietnam_war.m4a'>Which party came to power during the Vietnam War?</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='The Communist Party'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/the_independent_party.m4a'><span>The Independent Party</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/the_green_party.m4a'><span>The Green Party</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/the_communist_party.m4a'><span>The Communist Party</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/the_democratic_party.m4a'><span>The Democratic Party</span></div></div></div><div class='sentence_completion_question question-container' data-question-id=7125 data-hint-location='26729' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/_blank__has_influenced_laos_both_culturally_and_politically.m4a'><span class='blank'>Vietnam</span> has influenced Laos, both culturally and politically.</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='Vietnam'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/vietnam.m4a'><span>Vietnam</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/japan.m4a'><span>Japan</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/russia.m4a'><span>Russia</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1361/mongolia.m4a'><span>Mongolia</span></div></div></div><div class='question-buttons'><button class='skip-button'></button><button class='hint-button'></button><button class='speak-button'></button></div></div></div>
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