Vietnamese and Cambodian armed forces seek stronger ties

During talks held following the welcome ceremony, Lt. Gen. Nghia expressed his pleasure at welcoming Gen. Manet and his delegation, especially in the context of both nations launching a broad array of activities to celebrate the 55th anniversary of diplomatic ties which began in 1967 and the “Vietnam - Cambodia Year of Friendship 2022".

He also congratulated the Cambodian People's Party (CPP) on almost winning an absolute victory in the commune and ward council elections held in June.

Lt. Gen. Nghia expressed his confidence that Gen. Manet's visit will add fresh impetus to co-operative ties between the two militaries, thereby further strengthening the "good neighbourliness", traditional friendship, comprehensive, and long-term sustainable cooperation" between both sides.

Recent times has seen the two armies play a pivotal role in pandemic prevention and control in their respective countries, whilst also seeking closer co-ordination to achieve important and effective results in military and defence tasks in line with to the annual National Defence Cooperation Plan.

The two sides have successfully organised a wide range of meaningful activities during the "Vietnam - Cambodia Friendship Year 2022", with notable event including the 45th Anniversary Celebration of "Journey to overthrow Pol Pot Genocide" and the first Vietnam-Cambodia border defence friendship exchange.

Regarding co-operation within the multilateral framework, Lt. Gen. Nghia congratulated the Ministry of National Defense and the Royal Cambodian Army Command on the recent success of ASEAN military and defence conferences.

He affirmed that the nation always supports and will closely co-ordinate with Cambodia to successfully organise further military and defence conferences during the year of taking over the position of ASEAN Chair for 2022.

As part of the occasion, the head of the Vietnamese delegation invited their Cambodian counterpart to attend the Conference of Army Commanders of ASEAN countries, the ASEAN Military Shooting Tournament, and the 2022 International Defence Exhibition organised by the Vietnamese side.

The two sides have also actively exchanged delegations, especially those at high level, as well as intensifying training links in accordance with their respective needs and capacity. Their military zones and border guard forces have shared information, conducted joint patrols, and friendship exchanges, thereby timely addressing arising problems and contributing to strengthening friendly relations between the two countries’ armies and people.

In response, Lt. Gen. Manet said considering their close proximity, the two countries should continue to work together to prepare to respond to non-traditional security challenges and foster ties of solidarity and friendship.

The two sides therefore agreed to work with each other to enhance the effectiveness of their joint efforts to fight cross-border crime. Military zones and border guards should maintain information sharing mechanisms, be ready to respond to any natural disasters, diseases, and non-traditional security problems, as well as work to prevent and control illegal migration, thereby ensuring security and safety of areas along their shared borders.  

The VPA and the RCAF will also seek to further promote their training co-operation, which they consider to be a long-term strategic issue.

The same day saw the Cambodian delegation pay a courtesy visit to the Chief of the General Staff of the VPA and Deputy Defence Minister, Sen. Lt. Gen. Nguyen Tan Cuong.