This is Hun Sen’s first Vietnam visit after he was re-elected as Prime Minister of Cambodia last October.
He is scheduled to hold talks with PM Dung and meet with other senior Vietnamese leaders to discuss ways to strengthen cooperative relations between the two countries.
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| PM Nguyen Tan Dung (R) met with PM Hun Sen at the 10th ASEAN-China Expo 2013 |
elations between Vietnam and Cambodia have developed considerably since the two countries established diplomatic ties in 1967.
Both countries have established the ties of fine neighbourliness, traditional friendship, comprehensive cooperation, and long-term stability.
Cambodia is projected to achieve GDP growth of 7% this year, creating the prerequisite for Vietnamese companies to do long-term business in the country – an important neighbourly market.
Two-way trade hit nearly US$2.7 billion in the first nine months of this year, a year on year increase of 10%, and the figure is expected to rise to US$3.5 billion this year.
Vietnam is Cambodia’s second biggest trade partner.
Vietnam and Cambodia have favourable conditions for stronger trade exchanges. Both countries have a long borderline running through 10 Vietnamese provinces and 9 Cambodia provinces.
They share 10 international border gates and many other main and subsidiary border gate pairs.
In addition, Cambodian and Vietnamese consumers have similar tastes, so Vietnamese goods sell well in Cambodia. Many high-quality Vietnamese goods fairs have been held in Cambodia, reaping great success.
Vietnam exports to Cambodia garments, plastics, electric cables, vegetable oil, seafood, fruit and vegetables, ceramics, milk, instant noodles, and fertilizers.
It imports tobacco material, rubber, timber, garment accessories, clothings, construction glass, and machinery equipment.
Many Vietnamese businesses have opened representative offices and branches in Cambodia to break into this market. Among them are Vietnam Airlines, the military-run telecoms giant Viettel, the Gold Star Rubber Corporation, the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam, the Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam (Agribank).
Cambodia encourages Vietnamese businesses to invest in rubber plantation, infrastructure construction (hospitals, roads, bridges, power plants), and mineral ore exploration.
