PHNOM PENH: Cambodia and China agreed to strengthen cooperation on human resource training and demining during a meeting between Prime Minister Hun Manet and General He Weidong of the People’s Liberation Army of China on December 4.

During the meeting, General He Weidong reaffirmed the strong historical ties between Cambodia and China and on their commitment to make their “Diamond Cooperation” a reality, which focuses on building strong bonds in politics, agriculture, energy, and security, among other areas. He also expressed confidence and optimism that Cambodia and China will stand shoulder to shoulder to achieve a common destiny under the leadership of the new PM.

Prime Minister Hun Manet me with the Chinese president and prime minister within his first two months in office to signal his commitment to the two countries’ cooperation in their 65th year of diplomatic relations. He said that their bond has only strengthened and expanded since the leadership of the late King Norodom Sihanouk and his father, former Prime Minister Hun Sen.

The Prime Minister also recalled his time as Commander of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces, which he stepped away from to become Prime Minister in August. He said that under his command, he paved the way for the two countries’ armed forces to build relations from unit-to-unit while China provided training to improve Cambodia’s military.

In the end, Prime Minister Hun Manet and General He Weidong jointly supported their countries’ agreements to further train human resources and work to demine Cambodia, which is still estimated to be plagues with millions of unexploded war remnants.