A system and method for stabilizing the frequency of the optical output signal of a laser wherein the laser output signal is interfered with at least one time delayed version of said signal to produce an optical interference signal having a frequency shift proportional to the rate of optical frequency change of the laser. The interference signal is processed to produce a frequency correction signal representing the frequency drift of the laser output signal. The laser output signal is combined with the frequency correction signal to stabilize the frequency of the laser output signal.