As part of his first official overseas visit following the 14th National Party Congress, the election of the 16th National Assembly and People’s Councils at all levels for the 2026–2031 term, this visit once again demonstrates the foreign policy of the 14th Party Congress, which places high priority on neighbourly relations with Cambodia. Taking place during the festive atmosphere leading up to Cambodia’s traditional New Year festival, Chol Chhnam Thmay, the visit reflects the sharing of joy and the warm and friendly sentiments between the peoples of the two countries.
Since the establishment of diplomatic relations nearly 60 years ago, despite the ups and downs of regional and global history, the close ties between Viet Nam and Cambodia have been continuously strengthened and developed, becoming a valuable shared asset of both nations. The strong friendship between the two neighbouring countries has been forged through their joint struggles for national independence and expanded later in the period of recovery and reconstruction.
Today, the two countries continue to accompany, support, and assist each other in a period of dynamic development and deep international integration. The solid foundation of friendship and cooperation built over nearly six decades provides a firm basis for confidence in an increasingly bright future, with comprehensive, effective, and substantive development of Viet Nam–Cambodia relations in the new context.
Building on this tradition, Viet Nam and Cambodia have maintained regular exchanges at all levels, making important contributions to strengthening political trust and bilateral cooperation. These mutual visits clearly demonstrate that the leaders of both sides are determined to further cultivate bilateral ties in the spirit of “good neighbourliness, traditional friendship, comprehensive cooperation, and long-term sustainability.”
Key bilateral cooperation mechanisms have been held regularly and continue to deliver effective results. Recently, the two sides successfully co-organised the 13th Conference on Cooperation and Development between Vietnamese and Cambodian Border Provinces as well as the 21st Meeting of the Joint Committee on Economic, Cultural, Scientific and Technical Cooperation.
On the solid foundation of political trust and the close bonds between the two peoples, Viet Nam–Cambodia relations have continued to develop effectively across multiple fields. Economic, trade, and investment cooperation has maintained steady growth. Viet Nam is currently Cambodia’s largest trading partner within ASEAN. Bilateral trade turnover reached 11.33 billion USD in 2025, up nearly 12% compared with 2024. Both sides are working towards raising this figure to 20 billion USD in the near future.
Meanwhile, defence and security cooperation continues to serve as a pillar of bilateral relations, with increasingly close and substantive progress. Both sides reaffirm the principle of not allowing any hostile forces to use one country’s territory to undermine the security of the other. In addition, cooperation has been actively promoted in other areas such as education and training, transport, culture, healthcare, and telecommunications.
On the international stage, Viet Nam and Cambodia maintain close coordination at global, regional, and subregional forums, particularly the United Nations, ASEAN, and ASEAN-led mechanisms, as well as Mekong subregional cooperation frameworks. This contributes to enhancing the standing and prestige of each country regionally and globally. Alongside the official visit to Laos on April 9, this visit to Cambodia by the Standing Member of the Secretariat underscores the profound significance of the enduring solidarity between the peoples of Viet Nam, Laos, and Cambodia for the stability and development of Viet Nam. The importance of this trilateral solidarity has been demonstrated throughout history and remains a valuable asset for all three nations, carrying long-term strategic significance for national construction, defence, and development.
May the official visit to Cambodia by Permanent Member of the CPV Central Committee’s Secretariat Tran Cam Tu and the high-level Vietnamese delegation be a success, contributing to shaping new directions for Viet Nam–Cambodia relations in the coming period, for peace, stability, cooperation, and sustainable development in the region and the world.
