As it wrapped up the end of last year, Thailand was absorbing harsh condemnation from Western governments and international humanitarian communities for the repatriation of Hmong refugees. Across the border in Vientiane, however, the Lao government quietly assessed its western neighbour's intentions - whether it would comply with the long-standing promise and cooperate in resettling one of the world's most controversial Lao minority groups over past three decades.

For the two countries, the common stakes are high and the dilemma is clear: to gain long awaited mutual trust or lose international creditability and support altogether. Three weeks after the repatriation, however, the criticism has not subsided. Last week, Eric John, US envoy in Thailand, labelled the repatriation as "involuntary". In response to his article, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs said his view was only "one side of the story and prejudged the future evolution of the situation".

Obviously, the Abhisit government remains unperturbed by the unfriendly comments. Otherwise the whole operation could have been further delayed, as before. For the past three decades, with more than three million Indochinese refugees successfully resettled in third countries on its record, the Thai government was used to these diatribes, which popped up depending on political pressure from major capitals. Indeed, the Thai government argued if the third countries were truly committed in resettling those Hmong, then the last minute hush-hush would not have happened.

At the informal foreign ministerial meeting at the resort town of Danang, last Wednesday, Thai foreign minister Kasit Piromya gave an unscheduled briefing on the Hmong repatriation to his Asean colleagues on Thai-Lao cooperation. Lao Deputy Prime Minister and foreign minister Thongloun Sisoulith was impressed and quickly expressed gratitude to the Thai government for taking the trouble to resettle the remaining 4,500 Hmong refugees inside Laos. Both countries emphasised the opposition, no matter how sensitive the operation, could be overcome if mutual national interests and trust were taken into account.

It is interesting to note that this time Thailand had gone out of its way to resist international pressure to delay the repatriation until it met the highest international agreements and standards. Both Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and Kasit pledged time and again to the international community that the Hmong would not be forced back. The Lao side has said very little so far. However, Vientiane has widely publicised the visit of Rep. Eni FH Faleomavaega, chairman of the US House Committee on foreign affairs' subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific and the global environment, said there was no indication of discrimination, harassment or mistreatment of the people in Phalak village, where the returnees were living.

That much was clear. It also helped to explain why the body language between Kasit and Thongloun was very friendly throughout the three-days they spent together - overcoming all past recalcitrance and mistrust. Since the victory of communist Laos in 1975, Thai-Laos relations have gone through a roller-coaster ride, interrupted from time to time with border clashes across the Mekong. At the end of 1987, they even fought a three-month war over sparsely populated villages in northern Thailand adjacent to Laos. Both sides suffered high casualties and their contacts were cut off. Despite all-round improvement and cooperation between them and subsequent Lao membership in Asean, trust can still be hard to find.

The main impediment has always been the Lao concern for its national security emanating from the Hmong refugees - who fought as pro-right wing government forces with the CIA and have lived in Thailand since 1975. For decades, their presence and cross border attacks from this group fermented deep-seated mistrust within the Lao top echelon. Efforts by previous Thai governments to repatriate them were slipshod because nobody, except the security apparatus, was willing to stick their neck out. The Abhisit government did. His leadership was questioned. His advocacy for human rights protection was ridiculed.

Now that security has been taken care of, Kasit said the Thai-Lao priority would be to intensify making the only land-locked member of Asean into a land-linked one. Last week, four foreign ministers and a permanent secretary for foreign affairs from Asean travelled by land from Suvannakhet, southern Laos to Danang, central Viet Nam, along Route 9, considered one of the most important infrastructures within the Asean Connectivity plan. Laos wants to make sure there will be economic dividends from being a transitory country.

Laos adopted chintanakarnmay, the equivalent of perestroika in 1984, to promote economic development abandoning centralised economic planning. Since then the country has improved its income and scales high on the economic development index, even though it's still considered one of the poorest countries in the world.

After the second Mukdaharn-Suvannakhet Bridge was opened three years ago, Thai-Laos contacts have increased many-fold both in terms of trade and people-to-people contact. The third and fourth bridge linking the two countries at Nakorn Phanom/ Kham- muan and Chiangkhong/Huayxai will also be completed next year and further enhance connectivity between the two countries, as well as expanding Laos' geographical outreach.

The outgoing Thai ambassador to Laos, Viboon Khusakhul, said that mutual Thai-Laos trust, which is unprecedented now, would facilitate further the next demarcation marking process round, expected next month, of the 810-kilometre border - now almost 95 per cent complete. Laos is the second country after Viet Nam to overcome the Indochina syndrome emanating from the Cold War, in adjusting bilateral ties with Thailand. In the past decade,Thai-Vietnam relations have been considered one of the best, without any bilateral problems. During the Cold War, Vietnam was considered Thailand's enemy No. 1. At present, only Thai-Cambodian relations suffer from such a malaise.

Both Thailand and Laos must come clean to eliminate lingering doubts over their joint repatriation actions. The Thai government must produce the list of Hmong who used to live in Phetchabun, screened for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and concerned countries, such as the US, which has resettled more than 14,000 Hmong. Another request involves four special cases, whom Abhisit authorised to stay in Thailand at the last moment.

In coming days, the burden of proof will be on the Lao side as well. The West and the international community need more evidence that the returned Hmong have not been discriminated against. They have urged Vientiane to allow direct access to the resettlement villages. Thongloun told Kasit during the bilateral meeting that some of the 158 Hmong who earlier wished to be settled abroad, have changed their minds as they wanted to remain inside Laos. Vientiane also must send back to Thailand those four special cases, which are being closely monitored by the international community.