Cambodian PM’s Vietnam visit to advance traditional friendship: official

Spokesman of the Cambodian Council of Ministers Phay Siphan told Vietnam News Agency correspondents that the visit takes place in the context of fruitful development of bilateral ties.

Through the Vietnam visit and other overseas trips following Hun Sen’s re-election as Cambodian PM, the leader aims to thank foreign friends for their support to Cambodia and himself, he said.

During his stay in Vietnam, the PM is scheduled to meet with Vietnamese leaders and witness the signing of many bilateral cooperation agreements.

The official stressed that Vietnam and Cambodia have proven the development of their ties to the world and generations of the two countries.

Highlighting the mutual understanding, respect, non-intervention into each other’s internal affairs and fraternity between Vietnam and Cambodia, he urged the two countries and their generations to continue exchanging experience and promoting mutual understating.

Cambodia is learning from Vietnam’s development experience, he said, stressing that the country always wants to cooperate with Vietnam, especially in economics.

The good neighbourliness and the stance of building a common border of friendship, peace, stability and development of the two countries’ leaders have contributed to developing Vietnamese and Cambodian border provinces.

On this occasion, Phay Siphan thanked the Vietnamese Government, State and people for their support and collaboration across various fields, including healthcare.

He also recalled the sacrifice by Vietnamese soldiers in Cambodia, stressing Vietnam has proven the value and purity of its support to the neighbouring country.

The official described the good neighbourliness between Vietnam and Cambodia as a model and said that the two countries will continue to work together to advance the relationship.

Vietnam and Cambodia established diplomatic relations on June 24, 1967. The two nations have regularly maintained the exchange of visits at all levels.

Vietnam has become one of Cambodia’s leading economic partners with two-way trade reaching nearly 3.8 billion USD in 2017, up more than 25 percent year-on-year.

The two countries are striving to raise the figure to 5 billion USD in the coming years.

Vietnam has to date invested in 206 projects in Cambodia with a combined registered capital of 3.02 billion USD, becoming among the top five foreign investors in Cambodia. Meanwhile, Cambodia has poured 58.1 million USD into 18 projects in Vietnam.

Last year, 835,000 Vietnamese visited Cambodia while 222,000 Cambodians travelled to Vietnam.