PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) and his Cambodian counterpart Samdech Techo Hun Sen (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam andCambodia have issued a joint statement on the occasion of the Vietnam visit byCambodian Prime Minister Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo Hun Sen fromOctober 4 – 5 at the invitation of his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc.
Following is the full text of the jointstatement:
1. At the invitation of H.E. Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Prime Ministerof the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam, Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo HunSen, Prime Minister of the Kingdom ofCambodia, led a high-level delegation of the Government of the Kingdomof Cambodia to pay an official visit to the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam from04 to 05 October 2019.
2. During the visit, Samdech Techo PrimeMinister Hun Sen held talks with H.E. Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Prime Minister of VietNam, paid a courtesy call on H.E. Nguyen Phu Trong, the General Secretary ofthe Communist Party and President of Viet Nam, met with H.E. Nguyen Thi KimNgan, President of the National Assembly of Viet Nam, and paid the respect to andlaid wreaths at the Memorial of National Heroes and Martyrs and Ho Chi MinhMausoleum.
Samdech Techo Prime Minister Hun Sen and Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phucco-chaired the Viet Nam - Cambodia Investment and Trade Promotion Conferenceand witnessed the signing of a number of bilateral Agreements, namely: (1) The Grant Agreement on the Projectof Construction of new Administrative Building for the National Assembly ofCambodia; (2) The GrantAgreement for the construction of some components of the Voluntary and Community-BasedTreatment Service Center for Drug Addicts in Preah Sihanouk Province, Cambodia;(3) Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation and Mutual Assistance in CustomsMatters; (4) Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation on Trade Promotion; (5)Memorandum of Understanding on Development and Connection of Border TradeInfrastructure; (6) Memorandum of Understanding on the Progress of Constructionand Handover Plan of Cambodia Border Model Market; (7) Memorandum ofUnderstanding on Power Sector Cooperation; and (8) Memorandum of Understandingon Investment Cooperation.
3. On 5th October 2019, SamdechTecho Prime Minister HunSen and Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc co-chaired the Conference reviewing theViet Nam - Cambodia border demarcation works since 2006 and the Signing Ceremonyof the two legal documents on border matters, namely: (1) The SupplementaryTreaty to the 1985 Treaty on the Delimitation of the National Boundary and the2005 Supplementary Treaty between the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam and the Kingdomof Cambodia and (2) The Protocol on theDemarcation and Marker Planting of the Land Boundary between the SocialistRepublic of Viet Nam and the Kingdom of Cambodia.
4. The two sides attached special importance to the signing ofthe two legal documents acknowledging the progress in land border demarcationand marker planting achieved so far (about 84%), reiterating that this marks ahistorical milestone in the process of land border settlement between the twocountries. They also agreed to complete the demarcation and marker planting forthe remaining border segments in the near future.
5. The two sides reaffirmed their commitment to the fullobservation of the border delimitation treaties and relevant border agreements signedbetween the two countries. They also agreed to enhance cooperation on border managementbased on existing legal frameworks and mechanism to build a borderlineof peace, stability, friendship, cooperation and sustainable development.
6. In the atmosphere of friendship, mutual understanding andtrust, both side’s Leaders held discussions in great depth and reachedimportant common stances on the Viet Nam - Cambodia bilateral relations and thecoordination between the two countries at regional and international fora.
7. The two sides noted with satisfaction the remarkable social and economicachievements that Viet Nam and Cambodia have recorded in recent years. Bothcountries have maintained their political stability and security, acceleratedtheir economic growth and improved their people’s living standards, thuscontinuously strengthening their role and standing in the region and the worldover. In this spirit, both sides agreed to maintain mutual support andassistance, and continue exchanging best practices for macro-economicmanagement and international integration in a new global context.
8. Both sides noted with satisfaction that the longstandingtraditional friendship and solidarity between Viet Nam and Cambodia, built onthe dedicated effort of generations of their respective leaders and peoplesthroughout history, have become a precious common asset. They reaffirmed theirdetermination to jointly and perseveringly preserve, cultivate and nurture thebond between Viet Nam and Cambodia, and raise it to new heights, grounded inpolitical trust, equality, mutual benefit, mutual respect and support under themotto of “good neighborliness, traditional friendship, comprehensivecooperation, long-lasting stability.”
9. The two sides agreed to further deepenpolitical relations through increasing high-level contacts and exchanges,maintaining existing bilateral cooperative mechanisms, intensifyingpeople-to-people exchange, strengthening friendly cooperation and substantiveassistance between their respective ministries, agencies and provinces, andcontinuing the organization of joint commemorative events.
10. The two sides expressed satisfaction withthe close and effective traditional relations between the two Defense Ministries,and between the Ministry of Public Security of Viet Nam and the Ministry ofInterior of Cambodia. Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to close cooperationto maintain common peace and security, especially along the two countries’ borderline,and to pursue the principle of not allowing any forces to use one country’sterritory to conduct acts against the other’s security and stability. The twoLeaders agreed to make further effort to search, excavate and repatriate theremains of Vietnamese volunteer soldiers who felt in the war in Cambodia, and towork closely to speed up the repairing and maintenance of Viet Nam - CambodiaFriendship Monuments in Cambodia.
11. Recognizing great opportunities for economic cooperation,bilateral trade and investment of neighbors, both sides agreed to harness allpotentials to bring economics to the forefront as a pillar of Viet Nam -Cambodia’s bilateral relations. The two sides agreed to foster connectivitybetween the two economies through the early finalization of the Master Plan onthe Viet Nam - Cambodia Economic Connectivity until 2030, and theimplementation of the signed agreements on transportation connectivity,including the MOU on Cooperation Strategy in Transport Sector for the Period2018-2025 with a Vision until 2030.
12. The two sides applauded the recent remarkable growth of two-waytrade volume, which increased by 24 percent in 2018 to over 4.7 billion USD and is expectedto exceed 5 billion USD in 2019. The two sides agreed to maintain this momentum ofgrowth in the coming years through enhancing trade promotion measures, andsupporting their respective enterprises to attend trade and investmentpromotion events, fairs and expos in either country.
13. The Cambodian side expressed the appreciation to Viet Nam asone of the top five foreign investors in Cambodia, with 214 projects worth over 3.3 billion USD in total. The Cambodian side pledged to step up the implementationof investment promotion measures and create a favorable environment for foreignbusinesses, including those from Viet Nam, to maintain efficient operation andexpand their investment in Cambodia.
14. The Cambodian side expressed the gratitude and appreciationfor the assistance of the Vietnamese side in providing training, capacitybuilding and grant aid over the years. The two sides agreed to the timelyimplementation of the assistance projects, and continue to explore ways andmeans to improve the effectiveness of Viet Nam’s assistance to Cambodia.
15. The two sides agreed to step up cooperation in areas of greatpotential such as information and communication technology, tourism, aviation,banking and finance, high-tech agriculture, farming and processing ofagro-forestry-fishery products and healthcare, among others. They urged therelevant ministries and agencies of both sides to utilize the existingbilateral mechanism, especially the Joint Commission on Economic, Cultural,Scientific and Technological Cooperation and the Conference on Cooperation andDevelopment of Border Provinces to strengthen this cooperation.
16. The Vietnamese sideexpressed its appreciation to the Kingdom of Cambodia for the continued supportand non-discriminatory treatment given to the people of Vietnamese originliving in Cambodia.
17. The two countries agreed to strengthencoordination, information exchange, and mutual support at regional andinternational fora, especially within ASEAN and its related mechanisms, the UN,WTO and ASEM. Emphasizing the importance of ASEAN solidarity, unity, andcentrality, both sides agreed to exert their efforts, along with other memberstates, to successfully build a rule-based, united, cohesive and people-centeredASEAN Community. In this spirit, the two sides pledged to coordinate closelywith each other for Viet Nam’s ASEAN 2020 Chairmanship and Cambodia’s hostingASEM 13th Summit 2020.
18. The two sides agreed to strengthencooperation in the effective and sustainable management, development and use ofthe Mekong water resources in line with the 1995 Agreement on the Cooperationfor the Sustainable Development of the Mekong River Basin, the 2018 Siem ReapDeclaration of the 3rd Mekong River Commission Summit, and the 2018Joint Declaration of the Greater Mekong Sub-region Summit, and other existingsub-regional mechanisms.
19. The two sides agreed to coordinate under the framework ofCambodia-Laos-Viet Nam (CLV) Development Triangle Area and relevant Mekong Sub-regioncooperation mechanisms, to advance the effective implementation of the ActionPlan for CLV Economic Connectivity up to 2030, approved at the CLV Summit inMarch 2018.
20. Both sides agreed to workwith relevant countries to promptly finalize negotiations for a comprehensive RegionalComprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) that would harmonize the interestsand fully account for the differences in development level among members.
21. Bothsides reiterated ASEAN’s positions on the South China Sea in recent joint statements,especially the Joint Communique of the 52nd ASEAN MinisterialMeeting (AMM52). Both sides expressed the view that the current tension mustsoon be resolved peacefully in accordance with international law, including the1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
22. The Leaders expressed their pleasure atthe positive and significant results achieved during the Visit. Samdech TechoPrime Minister Hun Sen expressed his sincere gratitude for the warm hospitalitythat the leaders and people of Viet Nam extended to the delegation, andcordially invited Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Vietnamese Leaders tovisit Cambodia at suitable times. The Vietnamese Leaders have accepted the kindinvitations with gratitude and the concrete dates of the future visits shall beagreed upon through diplomatic channels./.
