Prime Minister holds talks with Cambodian counterpart Hun Manet

Pham congratulated Prime Minister Hun Manet on his election as Vice President of the Cambodian People's Party (CPP) on December 10, 2023, and on the Cambodian Government's achievements over the past time, expressing his belief that the Cambodian Government would continue gaining greater achievements under the leadership of Prime Minister Hun Manet.

Prime Minister Pham reaffirmed Viet Nam's consistent policy of attaching importance to the good neighborliness, traditional friendship, and comprehensive and long-term sustainabe cooperation with Cambodia.

Viet Nam also treasures the two countries' tradition of solidarity and mutual assistance in the past struggle for national independence and in the current cause of national construction and development, Pham stressed.

Hun Manet expressed his pleasure to visit Viet Nam for the first time in his capacity as Prime Minister of Cambodia, reiterating that his Viet Nam visit aims to promote the traditional friendship and comprehensive relations beween the two countries.

Hun Manet expressed sincere thanks to Viet Nam's valuable support and assistance for Cambodia to get rid of the Pol Pot genocidal regime.

The two Prime Ministers were pleased with the positive developments of the Viet Nam-Cambodia relations over the past time, featuring with increasingly high political trust and growing defense and security cooperation.

The two-way trade increased by over 20 percent annually in the 2012-2022, surpassing US$10 billion last year.

Viet Nam becomes the top ASEAN investor and one of the five largest foreign investors in Cambodia, with 205 active projects worth US$2.95 billion.

In the first nine months this year, more than 640,000 Vietnamese visited Cambodia while around 250,000 Cambodian people travelled to Viet Nam.

Regarding measures to further strengthen bilateral cooperation, the two sides agreed to step up high-level visits and contacts, effectively implement the agreements reached by the two countries' senior leaders, promote the role of bilateral cooperation mechanisms, including the Joint Committee for Economic, Cultural, Scientific and Technological Cooperation and the Conference on cooperation and development between border provinces.

Both sides also agreed to strengthen exchanges between the two countries' youth generations and young leaders, and work together to organize events marking the 45th anniversary of the victory over the Pol Pot genocidal regime (January 7, 1979-January 7, 2023).

The pair agreed to continue promoting defense and security cooperation – one of the key pillar of the bilateral ties – in a bid to contribute to maintaining peaceful and stable environment in each country. They pledged to stick to the principle of not allowing any hostile forces to use one country's territory against the other.

The two sides agreed to continue effective implementation of the cooperation plans signed between the two countries' defense and security ministries, coordinate closely in management of the shared borderline and in prevention and control of transnational crime.

The two government leaders welcomed the organization of the first joint border defense friendship exchange at ministerial level between Viet Nam, Laos and Cambodia.

The Cambodian side committed to continue collaboration with Viet Nam in search and repatriation of the remains of Vietnamese voluntary soldiers and experts who sacrificed during the war in Cambodia.

On economic, trade and investment cooperation, the two Prime Ministers agreed to support each other in building indepedent and self-reliant economies; strengthen the connectivity between the two economies, including infrastructure connectivity and policy coordination; speed up trade exchange, including border trade and formulation of border economic zones in a bid to raise the two-way trade to US$20 billion in the future; encourage and create favorable conditions for the two sides' businesses to boost partnership.

The two Prime Ministers agreed to continue coordination to complete the remaining 16 percent of land border demarcation and marker planting.

Comparing notes on regional and international issues, the two Prime Ministers underscored the importance of maintaining peace, security, and stability in the region, including the maintenance of solidarity, common positions and central role of ASEAN over security and strategic issues in the region, including the East Sea issue.

They vowed to continue close coordination and mutual support for each other's positions at regional and international forums; working together with other ASEAN member States in the ASEAN Community building process; strengthening Viet Nam-Cambodia-Laos cooperation.

Following the talks, the two Prime Ministers witnessed the signing of three cooperation documents: A memorandum of understanding on science, technology and innovation cooperation between Viet Nam's Ministry of Science and Technology and Cambodia's Ministry of Industry, Science, Technology and Innovation; a memorandum of understanding between the Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Cambodia's Chamber of Commerce and Industry; and a memorandum of understanding between the Dilomatic Academy of Viet Nam and Cambodia's Institute of Diplomacy and International Relations./.