While Thailand wants Bilateral Talk, Vietnam got Bilateral Trade and more, what will Cambodia get?
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Vietnam has already achieved most of what it wants from Cambodia. Thanks to Vietnam's former partner, the Khmer Rouge, who killed and starved nearly two million Cambodians to "make room" Vietnam to use as a pretext to invade and install its newest ally to run Cambodia. Consequently, Vietnam has successfully created a long-lasting Cambodia-Vietnam ‘traditional friendship’ that is fully watched over by Vietnam.
Most Cambodians have realized that Vietnam’s grip on Cambodia is getting too tight and their gratefulness toward Vietnam is getting too costly for Cambodia. It is a do-or-die task for Cambodians to reverse such a one-way friendship, but now another big challenge from the western neighbor has just popped up violently—Thailand, too, wants a sweet piece of pie from Cambodia.
Unlike the Vietnamese, it may be a little too late or difficult for the Thais to infiltrate into Cambodian’s political, social, and economic infrastructures. Nevertheless, the important Cambodian territory along Thai-Cambodian border, especially around Khmer Temples, is too sweet for Thailand to ignore. Picture: sokheounpang.wordpress.com
While Vietnam has no problems in demarcating its border with Cambodia, Thailand too is pushing hard to get same status as Cambodia’s eastern neighbor. That’s why Thailand only wants the “bilateral talk” with Cambodia because if Vietnam can get it done bilaterally, Thailand too can do the same.
If Cambodia has lost so much territory to Vietnam as many Cambodians believe, then Cambodians must stand together to defend and to recover Cambodia’s territorial integrity; otherwise Cambodia would shrink further to the point that Mekong River would become the last border of Thailand and Vietnam. Picture: sokheounpang.wordpress.com
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[Vietnam] Prime Minister chairs trade conference in Cambodia
HA NOI — Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung is in Cambodia today, where he is co-chairing a two-day Viet Nam-Cambodia investment promotion conference expected to boost bilateral trade and investment ties.
Dung is also scheduled to attend the opening ceremony of the Cambodia-Viet Nam Securities Joint Stock Co and witness the handover of overseas investment licences to Vietnamese businesses.
Around 100 Vietnamese businesses are slated to be represented at the second annual investment conference opening today, where both sides are also expected to sign a number of new deals, review investment co-operation results since the first conference, and discuss measures to boost co-operation in investment, trade and tourism.
Bilateral trade has increased from US$1.33 billion in 2009 to $1.8 billion in 2010. Viet Nam has almost 90 investment projects in Cambodia with a combined capital of more than $2 billion. These projects include rubber plantations, mining, oil and gas exploration, electrical development, telecommunications, and finance and banking. The two countries have also shown a keen interest in promoting bilateral ties in education and training, healthcare and transportation.
Leaders of both Viet Nam and Cambodia have also affirmed their determination to complete land border demarcation and border-marker erection in 2012 in order to build a common border of peace, stability and development in line with the traditions and customs of both peoples. The two nations have successfully held a conference on the development and co-operation of the Cambodia-Viet Nam border provinces at the deputy prime minister-level and a Viet Nam-Cambodia border trade development conference at the level of trade ministers.
Both countries have also stepped up bilateral co-operation between border provinces in education, healthcare, culture, and science and technology.
The relationship between Viet Nam and Cambodia has developed in various fields since the establishment of diplomatic ties in 1967. Bilateral co-operation mechanisms including the Viet Nam-Cambodia Joint Commission for Economic, Cultural, Scientific and Technological Co-operation, the conference on the development and co-operation of border provinces and the joint border committee meet annually and have brought practical results.
The two nations have also worked closely within the framework of regional and international institutions such as the Mekong River Commission, the Greater Mekong Sub-region, the Ayeyawady-Chao Praya-Mekong Economic Co-operation Strategy, and the Cambodia-Laos-Viet Nam Development Triangle.
Dung's visit to Cambodia aims to affirm Viet Nam's consistent policy of attaching importance to enhancing its relations with Cambodia and the determination of the Vietnamese Government and people to join the Cambodian Government and people in bringing bilateral ties to a new height for mutual interest.
The regular exchange of delegations between the two countries have helped secure a fine neighbour relationship and tradition of friendship, as well as long-term, sustainable and comprehensive co-operation between the two countries. — VNS
