Phnom Penh (VNA) – Vietnam’s remarkable transformation story over the past 80 years has drawn global attention, with Cambodian analysts expressing their admiration for the country’s achievements, prestige and international standing while seeing both promise and peril in the new era – that of the nation’s rise.
In an interview with the Vietnam News Agency on the threshold of Vietnam’s National Day (September 2), Dr. Eng Kok Thay, Secretary of State at the Office of the Cabinet of the Royal Cambodian Government, stressed that Vietnam possesses tremendous momentum to transform itself into a global manufacturing hub.
According to his observations, many international corporations have recently established regional offices in Vietnam and built factories, seeking to diversify supply chains while capitalising on the country’s skilled yet affordable workforce. This provides excellent momentum for Vietnam to compete healthily with other nations and develop sectors including technology, education, sports, culture, tourism, and agriculture, he underscored.
With stable economic growth momentum, complete infrastructure system, good security, political stability, favourable business climate, and being a reliable partner, Vietnam has a solid foundation and great momentum to attract investments, allowing its deeper participation in Asia’s production network as well as global economy.
However, he highlighted climate change, fierce regional and global competition, geopolitical tensions, and great power rivalries as challenges for this export-oriented economy.
Khieu Kola, a senior editor at Cambodia’s CNC television channel under the Royal Group, echoed this view. He argued that Vietnam’s opportunities are inseparable from its challenges, pointing in particular to the trade tensions between major powers.
According to him, Vietnam’s success is the result of a consistent foreign policy of multilateralism and friendship with all nations, combined with an openness to global investment under a market economy framework.
The veteran journalist expressed interest and impression on the initial outcomes of the Communist Party of Vietnam’s drastic reform, including the anti-corruption campaign that channels recovered assets into the state budget and the implementation of the two-tier local government model.
Still, the senior editor warned that Vietnam’s rapid growth faces obstacles such as export hurdles tied to foreign import quotas. For Vietnam to sustain its momentum, he stressed, the country must maintain balanced relations with major partners, ensuring political stability while fueling economic expansion and investment attraction./.
