The friendship between China and Cambodia has remained strong and enduring

Cambodian Prime Minister Hon Manet will pay an official visit to China from September 14 to 16, and will attend the third "the Belt and Road" International Cooperation Summit Forum to be held in Beijing in October. Jin Ping, Director of the Institute of International Relations at the Royal Cambodian Academy of Sciences, recently stated in an interview with Economic Daily that Prime Minister Hun Manai has made China the first official country to visit since taking office and will continue to visit China for two months, fully reflecting the new Cambodian government's high importance placed on developing friendship between China and Cambodia. China Cambodia relations will continue to deepen in the future.

Since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Cambodia and China 65 years ago, the cooperation between the two countries has achieved fruitful results. The new Cambodian government will continue to adhere to the principles and framework of Cambodia China relations, and work with China to further develop cooperation in various fields between the two countries. He emphasized that the ironclad friendship between China and Cambodia is as solid as a rock and unbreakable, and the China Cambodia relationship is a model of new international relations. After the Cambodian general election, China immediately congratulated the People's Party on its victory and the election of Hong Manai as the new Prime Minister. China is Cambodia's true strategic reliance and strong strategic backing.

This year marks the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Cambodia. Since the two countries officially established diplomatic relations, China Cambodia relations have continuously reached new heights. In 2010, the two countries established a comprehensive strategic partnership of cooperation; In October 2016, the two countries signed the Memorandum of Understanding between the People's Republic of China and the Kingdom of Cambodia on the Preparation of an Outline for Cooperation in Jointly Promoting the Construction of the the Belt and Road; Signed the Action Plan for Building a Community of Shared Future between China and Cambodia in 2019; The China Cambodia Free Trade Agreement officially came into effect on January 1, 2022. When former Prime Minister Hun Sen visited China in February this year, the two sides once again launched the China Cambodia Friendship Year, reaching consensus on the "Diamond Six Sides" cooperation framework and building a community with a shared future for the new era, jointly promoting the construction of Cambodia's "Industrial Development Corridor" and "Fish and Rice Corridor".

He stated that the steadfast friendship between China and Cambodia is fully reflected in their firm support for their respective core interests. China has always supported the Cambodian people's independent choice of a development path suitable for their own national conditions, supported Cambodia's defense of national sovereignty, security, and development interests, supported the Cambodian people in advancing major domestic political agendas and economic and social development, and opposed external interference in Cambodia's internal affairs. Cambodia has always adhered to the One China principle without wavering, and both sides share weal and woe in maintaining world and regional peace and prosperity. When the COVID-19 broke out, China helped Cambodia quickly win the fight against the epidemic. China's vaccines, anti epidemic medical teams and other assistance made great contributions to Cambodia's fight against the virus. While China was actively fighting against the COVID-19 epidemic, Hun Sen made a trip through the snow and became the first foreign leader to visit China under the epidemic. In the face of difficulties, China and Cambodia have always been able to sail together through thick and thin, sharing weal and woe, fully reflecting the spiritual essence of a community with a shared future between China and Cambodia.

Jin Ping believes that economic and trade cooperation between Cambodia and China is of great significance for deepening bilateral relations. China is Cambodia's largest source of foreign investment, largest trading partner, and major donor country. China's cumulative investment in Cambodia has exceeded 20 billion US dollars. Last year, the trade between China and Cambodia exceeded 16 billion US dollars, and China has maintained Cambodia's position as the largest trading partner for 11 consecutive years. Thanks to the "the Belt and Road" cooperation, Cambodia has released huge development potential and maintained a high economic growth rate. China Cambodia economic and trade cooperation has played an important role in Cambodia's post pandemic economic recovery, making the Cambodian economy more resilient. Through the joint construction of the "the Belt and Road", Cambodia has highways, ports and new airports. Cambodia's infrastructure has been significantly improved, and regional connectivity has become more convenient. Chinese investment has created tens of thousands of employment opportunities for Cambodia, and the construction of West Port and the capital Phnom Penh Special Economic Zone has greatly improved the lives of the Cambodian people.

He also called on the two countries to further promote mutual understanding between the two peoples through exchanges in various fields and levels within the framework of the "Diamond Six Sides" cooperation, so that the two peoples, especially the younger generation, can better understand the importance of practical cooperation between China and Cambodia. This will promote a stronger friendship between the two countries, and jointly build a new era of China Cambodia community with a higher quality, level, and standard, contributing to peace, stability, and prosperity in the world and region.