Visiting U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (L) shakes hands with Laos' Prime Minister Thongsing Thammavong during their meeting in Vientiane, Laos, on July 11, 2012. (Xinhua/The Khaosan Pathet Lao)

In a historic move, U.S. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton visited Vientiane, Laos's capital, on Wednesday to improve ties and for talks on key topics.

The visit marks the first time an U.S. Secretary of State has visited the country since 1955, when the Lao civil war was in full swing and the U.S.-backed royalist faction was in power. The current communist government came to power in 1975.

During her short four-hour visit, Clinton met with Lao Foreign Minister Thongloun Sisoulith, followed by Prime Minister Thongsing Thammavong. During the discussions, both sides committed to further strengthening their relationship, according to a press release from the Lao Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Both sides also committed to continuing the search for the remains of U.S. soldiers lost, and for unexploded ordinance (UXO) from bombs dropped, during the Vietnam War.

UXO contamination is a major ongoing issue for Laos, which renders large areas of land unusable and regularly kills and maims those who inadvertently come across it.

Talks between Clinton and the Lao government focused on Laos' part in ASEAN-led regional cooperation, Laos' progress towards the Millennium Development Goals, and both nations commitment to resolve the remaining issues posed by the war.

The Millennium Development Goals are nine goals targeting a range of critical development indicators in the country, due in 2015. Several have been identified by the government as off-track to be reached.

Laos' expected ascension to membership of the World Trade Organization later this year was also discussed. Lao delegates thanked Clinton for her government's support for Laos' expected entry.

After her meetings with Sisoulith and Thammavong, Clinton toured the Cooperative Orthotics and Prosthetics Enterprise (COPE) center. Here she saw the impact of UXO contamination first-hand, as the facility is used to rehabilitate those who have been maimed by UXO. The U.S. government has been active in assisting Laos to remove UXO, donating 68 million U.S. dollars since 1993.

Clinton also visited the Ho Phra keo Museum, one of the oldest and best preserved temples in the Vientiane city. Here she announced that an additional 200,000 U.S. dollars had recently been approved for preservation of the iconic Wat Xieng Thong temple in the World Heritage city of Luang Prabang, as part of the Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation program.

Clinton was invited to visit Laos, in exchange for Sisoulith's visit to Washington in 2010. Clinton flew into Vientiane from Vietnam on Wednesday, and later left for Cambodia, as part of a whirlwind world-tour of eight countries around the world.