Beijing (Xinhua), Jan. 13 - Below are Mr. Lu Kang's responses to questions asked regarding to Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang's official visit to Cambodia this week.
Q: Premier Li Keqiang has concluded his official visit to Cambodia. Can you brief us on the consensus reached by China and Cambodia and outcomes achieved during this visit? This year marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Cambodia. What is the significance of this visit to the further growth of China-Cambodia relations?
A: Premier Li Keqiang has wrapped up his official visit to Cambodia and returned to Beijing yesterday evening. This visit has yielded fruitful outcomes. I would like to avail myself of this opportunity to give you a detailed introduction of it.
Premier Li Keqiang's visit to Cambodia, which took place at the very beginning of a new year, was the first overseas visit of the Chinese leaders in 2018. This speaks volumes about the great importance China attaches to the China-Cambodia relations.
During his visit, Premier Li Keqiang met with King Norodom Sihamoni and held talks with Prime Minister Hun Sen. The two sides spoke highly of the friendship and cooperation between China and Cambodia over the past six decades since the establishment of their diplomatic ties, and agreed to build on the past achievements and usher in a new future and jointly forge a strategic community of shared future.
The two sides will maintain frequent high-level exchanges, strengthen strategic communication and support each other on major issues. We will continue supporting the Cambodian people in choosing the development path that suits their national realities on their own and providing assistance to help the Cambodian side maintain stability, achieve development and improve people's livelihood as our capacity allows.
The two sides will seek greater synergy between their development strategies, jointly advance the Belt and Road Initiative, strive to achieve new trade growth target, promote such big projects as the Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone and speed up the construction of livelihood projects such as the roads, schools and hospitals in rural areas.
We will enhance people-to-people exchanges, encourage more Chinese citizens to travel to Cambodia and vice versa, create more opportunities for the youngsters from both countries to learn from each other and cultivate more successors to China-Cambodia friendship.
The two sides will also step up multilateral coordination, uphold the converging interests of the developing countries and make greater contributions to peace, stability and prosperity of the region and the world at large.
During his visit, Premier Li Keqiang and Prime Minister Hun Sen jointly witnessed the signing of 19 bilateral cooperation documents, visited the picture exhibition in memory of the 60th anniversary of the establishment of China-Cambodia diplomatic ties, attended the launching ceremony of the Love Heart Journey program funded by China and inaugurated the projects of China-Cambodia Friendship Preah Kossamak Hospital and Tboung Khmum Provincial Hospital constructed under the assistance of China.
Premier Li Keqiang's visit was paid when we celebrate the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Cambodia. The past six decades witnessed the enduring China-Cambodia friendship and the flourishing bilateral cooperation. With the outcomes of Premier Li Keqiang's visit being implemented step by step, the China-Cambodia Comprehensive Strategic Cooperative Partnership is bound to achieve even greater development.
