China, Cambodia pledge to further strengthen cooperation

PHNOM PENH, Nov. 11 (Xinhua) -- China and Cambodia have pledged to strengthen cooperation in various fields and accelerate the building of the China-Cambodia community with a shared future, during Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's visit to the country from Tuesday to Friday.

Leaders of the two countries have exchanged in-depth views on bilateral relations and international and regional issues of common concern and reached broad consensus, which has vigorously boosted the China-Cambodia comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership, said a joint communique issued here Friday.

The Cambodian side extended congratulations to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and spoke highly of the remarkable achievements made in the cause of the CPC and the country under the leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core.

The Cambodian side also spoke highly of the fact that the Chinese path to modernization has offered a new option for human development and progress, and the CPC and the Chinese people have contributed Chinese wisdom and solutions to solving the problems facing mankind.

The Cambodian side stressed that the country is willing to strengthen exchanges and mutual learning with the Chinese side and jointly enrich the route to modernization for the benefit of the people in both countries and the region.

The Cambodian side reiterated its firm stance to uphold the one-China principle, saying it opposes any words and deeds that infringe upon China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, opposes any form of "Taiwan independence" separatist activities and external forces interfering in sovereign nations' internal affairs under any pretext, and supports China in safeguarding its core interests and all its efforts to realize national reunification.

The two sides agreed to designate the next year as the China-Cambodia Year of Friendship and jointly organize a series of celebrations.

Both sides believe that accelerating the building of the China-Cambodia community with a shared future is in line with the common aspirations and fundamental interests of the two peoples and is conducive to regional peace, stability and development.

In this regard, they pledged to strengthen high-level strategic communication, and give full play to the role of the China-Cambodia Intergovernmental Coordination Committee.

They vowed to make full use of the China-Cambodia military exchange and cooperation mechanism, strengthen exchanges between the defense departments and militaries of the two countries at various levels.

In addition, both sides promised to accelerate the effective alignment of development strategies, and advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation.

The two sides agreed to develop Preah Sihanouk Province into a multi-purpose special economic zone, and speed up the building of major projects such as the new Siem Reap international airport and an undersea fiber optic cable network connecting the port in Preah Sihanouk and China's Hong Kong.

The two sides agreed to make full use of the mechanisms of the economic and trade cooperation committees of the two governments, give full play to the role of the China-Cambodia free trade agreement, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership and e-commerce cooperation mechanisms in promoting trade, and encourage more quality goods from Cambodia to enter the Chinese market through platforms such as the China International Import Expo, China Import and Export Fair and the China-ASEAN Expo.

Both sides will exploit the China-Cambodia traditional Chinese medicine center to continue to support the development of Cambodia's medical and health services and provide COVID-19 vaccines to the country in light of its needs, according to the joint communique.

The two sides agreed to strengthen cooperation in science, education, culture, health, tourism and at sub-national levels, support the Chinese language teaching in Cambodia, and promote cooperation in the digital transformation of education.

The two sides will jointly protect cultural heritage in Asia and support the protection and restoration of Angkor Wat, Preah Vihear Temple and other cultural heritage sites in Cambodia.

The Cambodia side will support and actively participate in the China-proposed Global Development Initiative and be committed to implementing the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The two sides also called for upholding true multilateralism, promoting the democratization of international relations and making global governance fairer and more equitable.

They agreed to oppose all forms of hegemonism and power politics, the Cold War mentality, unilateralism and exclusive small circles, interference in other countries' internal affairs, and oppose double standards.

The two sides agreed to further strengthen coordination and cooperation under multilateral frameworks such as the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation and the China-ASEAN cooperation, jointly promote the building of a closer Lancang-Mekong community with a shared future and deepen the China-ASEAN comprehensive strategic partnership.

Stressing that the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) has played a key role in maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea since its signing 20 years ago, the two sides called on relevant parties to continue to fully and effectively implement the DOC, deepen practical maritime cooperation, and strive for the early conclusion of the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea on the basis of consensus.

During the visit, leaders of both countries witnessed the signing of cooperation documents on climate change, agriculture and agricultural trade, customs, science and technology, traditional Chinese medicine, education, development cooperation, people's livelihood and infrastructure, according to the joint communique.