Vietnam, Cambodia seek to bolster all-round ties

Prime Minister Le Minh Hung held talks with his Cambodian counterpart Hun Manet in Phnom Penh on October 9, during which the two sides sought measures to bolster bilateral ties in all fields.

At the talks, which followed an official welcome ceremony for the Vietnamese leader, PM Hun Manet warmly welcomed PM Hung on his first official visit to Cambodia as head of the Vietnamese Government, highlighting the visit’s significance in promoting increasingly substantive and effective bilateral relations.

He expressed his appreciation and gratitude for Vietnam’s tremendous and timely support for Cambodia in its struggle for independence and liberation from the genocidal regime in the past, as well as in its current national construction and development.

The Cambodian PM praised Vietnam’s achievements, particularly efforts to streamline the administrative apparatus and promote rapid and sustainable economic growth, expressing confidence that Vietnam will successfully achieve its strategic development goals for 2030 and 2045.

PM Hun Manet affirmed that the Cambodian Government and people always wish to work with Vietnam to preserve and promote the relationship of good neighbourliness, traditional friendship, comprehensive cooperation and long-term sustainability for peace, stability and prosperity in both countries.

PM Hung expressed his pleasure at visiting beautiful Cambodia, and extended his greetings and best wishes to Cambodia’s leaders and people on the occasion of the Pchum Ben Festival.

He expressed confidence that, under the reign of King Norodom Sihamoni and the leadership of the Senate, National Assembly and the Government headed by PM Hun Manet, Cambodia will continue to achieve important accomplishments, successfully implement the first phase of its Pentagonal Strategy and build a prosperous nation.

The Vietnamese leader stressed that the friendly neighbourliness between Vietnam and Cambodia have been nurtured through the sacrifices and contributions of generations of people from both countries. He described these ties as an invaluable asset for both nations and an important factor in maintaining peace, stability and development in the region.

He affirmed that Vietnam always attaches importance to its relations with Cambodia and will work with the country to preserve and promote the tradition of solidarity and close bonds between the two peoples.

The two PMs expressed their satisfaction with the positive development of Vietnam-Cambodia relations in recent years. Political ties have continued to be consolidated, with political trust strengthened through regular high-level visits and contacts.

Defence and security cooperation has remained an important pillar of bilateral relations, while economic, trade, investment, education and training cooperation, as well as people-to-people exchanges, have received considerable attention and achieved positive results, they noted.

They also noted the continued expansion of tourism cooperation, including joint efforts to strengthen tourism connectivity and attract international visitors to both countries.

They agreed to continue effectively implementing reached agreements and promoting the role of existing bilateral cooperation mechanisms, thereby laying a solid foundation for stable, substantive and sustainable development of bilateral relations.

The two PMs concurred to strengthen cooperation and close coordination in maintaining security, public order and social safety in each country, and reaffirmed the principle that neither country would allow any force to use its territory to oppose or undermine the security and interests of the other.

They pledged to enhance coordination in border management and protection, and combat transnational crime, particularly high-tech crime and online fraud, thereby helping ensure security and safety for the people of both countries.

On this occasion, PM Hung congratulated PM Hun Manet on successfully chairing the International Conference on Combating Online Scams in Phnom Penh in September. He affirmed that Vietnamese competent agencies stand ready to continue sharing experience and strengthening coordination with their Cambodian counterparts in this field.

Regarding economic, trade and investment cooperation, the two PMs affirmed their determination to achieve stronger progress in linking the two economies, tapping their potential, advantages and complementarities. They agreed to promote cross-border economic cooperation and facilitate trade, investment and business activities between enterprises of the two countries.

They agreed to strive to raise bilateral trade to 20 billion USD in the coming period, while encouraging businesses from both countries to strengthen investment cooperation, develop cross-border industrial and agricultural value chains, and expand processing industries. They also called for a gradual shift from traditional trade towards investment, production and deeper processing.

The leaders further agreed to enhance locality-to-locality cooperation, particularly among border provinces, and promote infrastructure, trade and logistics connectivity to facilitate the movement of goods and people-to-people exchanges. They stressed that economic cooperation should go hand in hand with maintaining security and public order in border areas and building a border of peace, friendship, cooperation and shared development.

Both sides underscored the importance of expanding people-to-people exchanges, particularly activities fostering closer ties between young people and young leaders of the two countries, thus helping younger generations gain a deeper understanding of the history and traditions of friendship, solidarity and cooperation between Vietnam and Cambodia, while carrying forward their responsibility to preserve, nurture and promote the good relations between the two peoples.

The two countries will coordinate closely in organising activities under the “Vietnam-Cambodia Friendship Year 2027”, marking the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations (June 24, 1967 2027), contributing to promoting solidarity and close bonds between the two peoples, further strengthening the social foundations of Vietnam-Cambodia relations.

Discussing regional and international issues, the two PMs agreed to enhance information sharing and consultations on strategic issues relating to each country’s security, stability and development. They also agreed to maintain close coordination and support for each other at ASEAN and other multilateral mechanisms of which both countries are members.

Immediately after the talks, PM Hung and PM Hun Manet witnessed the exchange of six bilateral cooperation documents covering security, drug prevention and control, trade, culture, education and training./.