Prime Minister Hun Sen and his Vietnamese counterpart Pham Minh Chinh have agreed to further strengthen political trust by cooperating to build a “peaceful and friendly” border between the two countries.

In a phone call on April 12, the two leaders reiterated their will to maintain and strengthen the historically warm relations between the two countries so as to ensure mutual security and development.

In a press release issued after the call, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation said: “Prime Minister Hun Sen and His Excellency Pham Minh Chinh agreed on the need to continue strengthening political trust, increase cooperation in the “new normal” of the post-Covid-19 era to promote socio-economic recovery and… cooperate to build a peaceful and friendly border between the two countries.”

The Vietnamese prime minister affirmed that his country had “fully supported” Cambodia in its role as chair of ASEAN in 2022. He said he believed that under the current leadership, Cambodia will be “more developed, prosperous and successful”, the press statement said.

Hun Sen expressed his belief that the government and people of Vietnam would continue to “make major achievements” in the “new normal” era in both the region and the world.

Both sides affirmed that relations and cooperation between Cambodia and Vietnam have made “positive progress” so far – despite the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.