By Xiong Bo, Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia

Friendship Blossoms in The Land of the Khmer

By Xiong Bo, Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia

Xiong Bo, Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia.

On October 13-14, Chinese President Xi Jinping paid a state visit to Cambodia–the first time in four years a Chinese top leader has visited Cambodia. President Xi’s visit has opened a new chapter in the history of China-Cambodia traditional friendship.

China and Cambodia enjoy a long history of friendship. As early as the 13th century, Yuan-Dynasty official Zhou Daguan, based on his one-year stay in Cambodia as an envoy, wrote the book The Customs of Cambodia, documenting the thriving prosperity of the Angkor Kingdom as well as the friendly relationships that existed between the people of the two countries.The famous Ming Dynasty navigator Zheng He (or Cheng Ho, 1371-1433) stopped over in Cambodia several times during his voyages to the Western Seas, and a temple was specially built in honor of him by the local people. In 1958, China and Cambodia officially established diplomatic relations, heralding a new dawn for their friendship. From then on, the China-Cambodia friendly ties jointly forged and fostered by leaders of the older generations of the two countries have withstood the test of time and international vicissitudes, only to grow stronger as time passes by.

In recent years, the relationship between China and Cambodia has continued to flourish. The two countries have emerged as good neighbors that coexist harmoniously, intimate brothers with all sincerity, devoted friends who offer full support at crucial moments and true partners sharing joys and sorrows. They have set an example of how two countries should treat each other as equals and cooperate with absolute sincerity.

As both sides boosted political mutual trust, high-level visits between the two nations have increased. Following Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni’s state visit to China in this June, President Xi paid a visit to Cambodia, raising bilateral high-level contact to a new height.

Economic and trade cooperation between the two countries have borne fruit. As Cambodia’s largest trading partner and source of foreign investment, China is playing an increasingly important role in the economic and social development of Cambodia. In 2015, bilateral trade volume reached US$4.43 billion, an 18-percent year-on-year increase, and accumulated investment from China to Cambodia exceeded US$12 billion.The Belt and Road Initiative proposed by President Xi has a linkage with Cambodia’s Rectangular Strategy for Growth, which presents both with tremendous cooperation space and potential.

People-to-people and cultural exchanges have also been thriving. The year 2015 saw nearly 800,000 Chinese tourist visits to Cambodia. With more than 10 Chinese cities offering direct flights to Cambodia, there are now 35 daily flights between the two countries. Bilateral exchanges of art troupes, overseas students and personnel training have increased, and as “Mandarin fever” heats up, Confucius Institutes and Confucius Classrooms are gaining wide popularity in Cambodia.

China and Cambodia are ramping up their collaboration in international and regional affairs. Based on a high-level political consensus, the two countries will join hands to safeguard China-ASEAN relations, as well as regional peace and stability.

Both China and Cambodia are ancient civilizations with splendid histories. They shared similar experiences in the early 20th century in fighting for national independence and liberation, thus truly understanding the value of independence and peace. As a traditional friend of Cambodia, China always supports its neighbor’s efforts to maintain national independence, sovereignty and ability to follow a development path suitable to its own national conditions. China is active in helping Cambodia accelerate development and improve its people’s livelihoods. Since the 1990s, China has assisted Cambodia in building 2,600 kilometers of roads, completing 413,000 acres of farmland irrigation and erecting 4,998 kilometers of power lines.

In the new era, the China-Cambodia ties are facing rare opportunities. Xi’s visit will surely inject a powerful impetus into the development of bilateral comprehensive strategic cooperation partnership, bring tangible benefits to both peoples and make crucial contributions to regional peace, stability and development. I firmly believe that traditional friendship between the two countries will be carried forward from generation to generation, and the flowers of China-Cambodia friendship will bloom brilliantly across the Khmer Land and eventually bear remarkable fruit.