Cambodia, Vietnam agree to promote bilateral cooperation

The Vietnamese delegation headed by Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung has concluded his three-day official visit to Cambodia on Wednesday.

"The visit of the Vietnamese delegation aims to make an on-the- spot investigation about Cambodia's market and the investment environment in an effort to promote the trade and economic cooperation between the two countries," Hor Namhong, Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, told reporters after the Wednesday's meeting.

Nguyen Sinh Hung arrived here on Monday noon for a three-day official visit at the invitation of Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Hor Namhong.

During the visit, Nguyen Sinh Hung was received in Royal Audience by King Norodom Sihamoni, and paid courtesy calls on Senate President Chea Sim, acting-President of the National Assembly Nguon Nhel and Prime Minister Hun Sen. Nguyen Sinh Hung also held bilateral talks with Hor Namhong on strengthening bilateral cooperation.

Meanwhile, the relative workgroups of the two countries discussed the bilateral cooperation in the production of agriculture, electricity and rubber, and the exploration of gas and oil, ore mining as well as investment in trade and aviation.

Cambodia and Vietnam have agreed in principle to jointly explore the seabed beneath their overlapping sea border for oil, but no details of how that exploration might proceed have been decided.

Nguyen Sinh Hung said that Vietnam will open more flights from Vietnam to Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, the home of world well-known Angkor Wat temples, in order to attract more Vietnamese tourists to Cambodia. He also proposed the establishment of more economic zones at the border gates of the two countries to facilitate the business operations.

Both sides also agreed to promote the cooperation on finance to meet the demands of the rapid development of trade and economy between the two countries.

During the meeting, the two leaders reviewed their trade exchanges over the past five years which have since 2000 amounted to nearly one billion U.S. dollars, and planned to increase bilateral trade volume to 2 billion dollars by 2010.

Foreign Minister Hor Namhong thanked Vietnam for offering the GSP (Generalized System of Preference) for Cambodia to increase its exports such as rice and tobacco to Vietnam.

Regarding the electricity, Foreign Minister Hor Namhong asked Vietnam to continue setting up the power supply networks to Phnom Penh.

Nguyen Sinh Hung said that his country will continue to export electricity to Cambodia and will encourage Vietnamese enterprise to invest in Cambodia's construction of hydropower plant.

It is Nguyen's first visit to Cambodia since he assumed the post in June.

Source: Xinhua