Prime Minister Le Minh Hung met Vietnamese community and representative agencies in Cambodia

Vietnamese Ambassador to Cambodia Nguyen Minh Vu stated that the Vietnamese community in Cambodia is over 100,000 people, living and working across 25 provinces and cities. The community makes positive contributions to Cambodia as well as to the traditional friendly relationship between Vietnam and Cambodia.

On behalf of the Vietnamese community in Cambodia, Mr. Sim Chy, President of the Khmer-Vietnamese Association in Cambodia, affirmed that the community always strives to contribute to fostering friendly relations between the two countries.

He expressed his deep gratitude to the leaders of the Party, State, Vietnam Fatherland Front , ministries, departments, localities, the Vietnamese Embassy, businesses, and philanthropists for their concern and support for the community, especially in resolving legal documents, assisting people in times of difficulty, natural disasters, fires, and organizing Khmer language classes.

Mr. Leng Rithy, President of the Vietnam-Cambodia Business Association, expressed his delight at Vietnam's recent development achievements and affirmed that Vietnamese businesses in Cambodia have played a connecting role in promoting trade between the two countries. He pledged to continue efforts to improve the effectiveness of trade connections and investment promotion, thereby contributing to the economic development of each country and strengthening the bond between the people of the two nations.

Proposing directions for future cooperation, Mr. Leng Rithy suggested that both sides need to shift strongly from a "buying and selling of goods" relationship to a "joint investment, joint production, and joint processing" relationship, thereby forming value chains and expanding markets based on leveraging the complementary advantages of the two economies.

Speaking at the meeting, Prime Minister Le Minh Hung emphasized the Party and State's determination to put policies and guidelines into practice, using practical effectiveness for the people and businesses as a measure of success. Assessing the results of working sessions with Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Hun Manet, Senate President Samdech Hun Sen, and other high-ranking Cambodian leaders, the Prime Minister stated that both sides had reached many strategic agreements to expand comprehensive cooperation. Accordingly, bilateral trade turnover in the first nine months of the year reached approximately 10 billion USD.

Both sides agreed to upgrade the Committee on Economic, Trade and Investment Cooperation to the level chaired by a Deputy Prime Minister; and to maintain a mechanism for regular dialogue at least once a year between Deputy Prime Minister-level leaders and the business communities of both countries. The two countries will also finalize the agreement on Phase 1 and prepare for the expansion of Phase 2 of the Ho Chi Minh City - Moc Bai - Bavet - Phnom Penh connecting route; and study the development of cross-border economic zones, promoting waterway transport and the development of the digital economy.

Regarding security and the building of a peaceful and friendly border, both sides committed to preventing any force from using the territory of one country to undermine the other, while strengthening coordination in preventing and combating cross-border crime, drug trafficking, and human trafficking.

Referring to the work related to Vietnamese people abroad, the Prime Minister emphasized the new guiding spirit of the Politburo, affirming that the Vietnamese community abroad is not only an inseparable part of the nation, but also a strategic resource, contributing to enhancing the overall national strength.

Sharing in the difficulties faced by the Vietnamese community in Cambodia, the Prime Minister affirmed that the Vietnamese Government consistently requests the Cambodian side to pay attention and create favorable conditions for the community to stabilize their lives and settle down.

The Prime Minister requested the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Vietnamese Embassy to coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security and other relevant Cambodian agencies to focus on resolving obstacles related to administrative procedures, residency, naturalization, livelihoods, and resettlement; and to create conditions for Vietnamese children to attend public educational institutions in Cambodia.

The Prime Minister also instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Education and Training to study expanding undergraduate and postgraduate scholarship programs for children of the Vietnamese community in Cambodia, contributing to the training of human resources for the future.

For the Vietnamese community, the Prime Minister urged them to continue strictly adhering to Cambodian law, caring for children and the younger generation, and creating conditions for their children to receive a full education. The Prime Minister expressed his hope that the community would continue to play a role as a bridge of friendship between the people of the two countries.

Organizations such as the Khmer-Vietnamese General Association and the Vietnamese Business Association in Cambodia need to strengthen their core role in uniting and gathering the community, attracting young people and reputable individuals to work together to build an increasingly strong and sustainably developing community.