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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
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Laos
Index
In 1975 the Lao People's Navy (LPN) was established
with the
remnants of the Royal Lao Navy. Composed of approximately
twenty
United States-made river patrol boats and sixteen
amphibious
landing craft, the navy in mid-1994 had a personnel
strength of
around 500. As with the air force, Vietnamese advisers
helped
organize the LPN and trained Laotian cadre in river
operations and
boat maintenance. The force is responsible for maintaining
the
security of inland waterways, which includes controlling
the
movement of resistance forces from their sanctuaries in
Thailand,
across the Mekong River. In the early 1980s, the navy
received six
used Soviet Shmel patrol boats and at least twelve
more
river patrol boats, bringing its total inventory to around
thirtyone patrol boats. By mid-1994, the navy had a total of
fewer than
fifty river patrol boats and continued to provide a
marginal level
of security for inland waterways.
Data as of July 1994
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