PHNOM PENH: The President of Germany, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, is paying his first official state visit to Cambodia from 14-16 February 2023. Before meeting with Cambodian leadership, he visited the demining operation area in Puok district and visited the temples in Siem Reap province.

On Wednesday morning, 15 February 2023, the German President met with the President of the Cambodian Senate, Say Chhum, before having an official meeting with the Prime Minister of Cambodia.

The German President said that he believes his first visit to Cambodia is testament to the friendly relations and good cooperation between the two countries.

He added that his delegation’s current visit also shows the strengthening of existing relations and cooperation as well as the continuation of operational cooperation in the future.

The Acting Head of State and President of the Cambodian Senate, in turn, emphasized that the German President’s visit is of great significance to Cambodia and reflects the care, friendship and good cooperation between the two countries.

The Senate President said he is confident that the two countries will continue to pay close attention to further strengthening bilateral and multilateral relations to bring greater mutual benefits for the two countries in the future.

He also expressed his highly appreciation for the good relations and cooperation between Germany and Cambodia, particularly in relation to politics, economy, trade, health, culture, education and people-to-people exchange.

The trade volume between Cambodia and Germany has been growing steadily, with Germany having the largest trade volume with Cambodia among European Union countries. In 2022, trade between the two countries increased by 4% since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Senate President Say Chhum further thanked the German government for providing grants and concessions to Cambodia since 1994, helping to develop a number of priority areas, including education, health, social protection, sustainable development, governance, culture, poverty resilience and demining.