Cambodia lauds China's global initiatives for contributions to development, prosperity

PHNOM PENH, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia's senior minister Ouch Borith has praised China's global initiatives for their contributions to common development and shared prosperity in the world.

Borith made the remarks at a forum in Beijing on Thursday, according to a statement of his speech released to the media by the ministry of foreign affairs on Friday.

He commended the Global Civilization Initiative (GCI), which values in-depth inter-civilizational exchange and dialogue to advance human progress and foster mutual appreciation of shared hopes and prosperity.

He also lauded the Global Development Initiative (GDI) and the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), saying that they have driven high-quality development and promoted connectivity across Asia, Europe, Africa and Latin America through infrastructure, people-to-people exchange, human resources development, green growth and climate resilience.

"Cambodia pledges continued collaboration to implement these initiatives in the interest of all nations," Borith said.

He said as a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Cambodia is committed to active engagement in multilateral cooperation, advocating for free and open trade while rejecting protectionism, unilateralism, and economic nationalism.

"Asia's continued development relies upon strengthened collaboration and partnership, leveraging our diversity as strength," he said. "Through open and inclusive platforms, we can overcome challenges and maximizing opportunities for mutual gains."