President To Lam begins state visit to the Kingdom of Cambodia

According to the special correspondent of VNA, at 1:35 p.m. on July 12 (local time),President To Lam led a high-ranking delegation of Vietnam to Phnom Penh International Airport in the capital Phnom Penh, starting a state visit to the Kingdom of Cambodia from July 12-13 at the invitation of Cambodian King Preah Bat Samdech Preah Boromneath Norodom Sihamoni.

Ceremony to welcome President To Lam at Phnom Penh International Airport. Photo: Nhan Sang/VNA

Phnom Penh International Airport is decorated with two large-scale billboards with portraits of King Norodom Sihamoni and President To Lam, along with many flags of Vietnam and Cambodia. Accompanying them are bilingual Vietnamese and Cambodian words: "Warmly welcome Vietnamese President To Lam on his state visit to Cambodia; Long live the solidarity and friendship between Vietnam and Cambodia."

President To Lam arrives at Phnom Penh International Airport. Photo: Nhan Sang/VNA

Welcoming President To Lam and the high-ranking delegation of our country at Phnom Penh International Airport, on the Cambodian side were Senior Minister in charge of Royal Palace Affairs Kuy Sophal; Minister of Tourism Sok Soken; Cambodian Ambassador to Vietnam Chea Kimtha; and officials of the Cambodian Ministry of Foreign Affairs .

On the Vietnamese side, there were Vietnamese Ambassador to Cambodia Nguyen Huy Tang and staff of the Vietnamese Embassy in Cambodia. A large number of Vietnamese people in Cambodia were also present at the airport to welcome the President with bouquets of flowers, portraits of President To Lam and King Norodom Sihamoni and the national flags of the two countries.

This is the first visit of President To Lam to the Kingdom of Cambodia after being elected by the National Assembly to hold the new position. The State President leading a high-ranking Vietnamese delegation to pay a State visit to Cambodia is of great significance, marking a milestone to consolidate, nurture and further deepen the relationship between Vietnam and Cambodia under the motto of "good neighbourliness, traditional friendship, comprehensive cooperation, long-term sustainability", contributing to strengthening the strategic trust between the Communist Party of Vietnam and the Cambodian People's Party (CPP), with CPP President, Senate President Samdech Techo Hun Sen and Prime Minister Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet.

In an interview with the press ahead of the visit, Deputy Foreign Minister Do Hung Viet affirmed that the visit will certainly create a new impetus to develop more deeply, comprehensively and strongly the good neighborly relations, traditional friendship, comprehensive cooperation, long-term sustainability between Vietnam and Cambodia; as well as promote cooperation within multilateral frameworks such as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Mekong sub-region cooperation mechanisms and the United Nations...

During his visit, President To Lam is expected to attend the official welcoming ceremony, meet with Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni; greet Queen Mother Norodom Monineath Sihanouk; hold talks with CPP President and Senate President Hun Sen; hold talks with Prime Minister Hun Manet; meet with National Assembly Chairman Khuon Sudary; attend a state banquet hosted by King Norodom Sihamoni; visit the Vietnamese Embassy and meet with representatives of the Vietnamese community in Cambodia, and a number of other important activities.

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