Hanoi (VNA) – A visit to Cambodia from April 24-25by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc will be his first official trip to theneighbouring country in the post of the Government leader of Vietnam. 

The visit, made at the invitation of CambodianPrime Minister Hun Sen, is also an important diplomatic activity in theVietnam-Cambodia Friendship Year 2017.

The two countries set up diplomatic ties on June24, 1967. They have maintained delegation exchanges at all levels, therebyconsolidating mutual trust between their leaders and people.

Among important visits in 2016 were a Statevisit to Cambodia by Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang in June and anofficial visit by National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan inSeptember. 

While Cambodian National Assembly President HengSamrin attended a ceremony marking 70 years of Vietnam’s first general electionin January, Prime Minister Hun Sen attended the World Economic Forum on theMekong Region in October and paid an official trip to Vietnam in December.

Vietnam currently has 190 investment projectswith total registered capital of 2.89 billion USD in Cambodia, focusing onagriculture and forestry. Cambodia’s investment in Vietnam has also been on therise, with 18 projects worth 58.125 million USD at present.

Bilateral trade exceeded 2.9 billion USD in 2016and is estimated at 936 million USD in the first quarter of 2017, ayear-on-year increase of 11.6 percent. The Q1 figure consists of 582 millionUSD of Vietnamese exports, up 8.9 percent, and 354 million USD worth ofCambodian goods, up 16.2 percent from a year earlier.

About 960,000 Vietnamese people visited Cambodiaand 212,000 Cambodians spent holidays in Vietnam last year. That made Vietnamthe biggest source of foreign tourists to Cambodia, which in turn ranks 13th inthe number of arrivals to Vietnam.

Cooperation between the two sides’ ministries,sectors, localities and organisations have been reinforced through delegationexchanges, mutual support in economic development, collaboration in health careand culture, and people-to-people exchange, thus helping to maintain peace,stability, friendship and cooperation along the shared borderline.

Regarding security-defence relations, thecountries have enhanced coordination in sharing information and resolvingissues arising along the border. They have increased joint patrols at sea andworked closely to search for and repatriate the remains of Vietnam’s volunteer soldierswho laid down in Cambodia during wars.

They have also kept the principle of notallowing any hostile forces to use the territory of this country to sabotagethe other country’s security and stability.

Vietnam and Cambodia are also striving to finishland border demarcation and marker planting as soon as possible so as to fosterpeace, stability, cooperation and sustainable development along their jointborderline.-VNA