Day: July 6, 2022

Up to now, more than US$15.6 million and almost 191 million Riel (Cambodian currency roughly US$47,000) have been raised from charitable people to contribute to realising Cambodia’s goal of becoming a mine-free nation by 2025.

“This is a big national movement toward the zero landmine by 2025,” wrote the Premier in a Facebook post this afternoon.

The Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA) has opened accounts at the ABA, ACLEDA and Canadia Banks to facilitate the people’s contribution.

“I hope our compatriots both inside the country and overseas will continue to participate in the campaign towards the end of the tragedy on our land by 2025,” Samdech Techo Hun Sen added.

At a get-together here this morning with the Cambodian delegation who will leave for the ASEAN Para Games in Indonesia, Prime Minister Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo Hun Sen said that Cambodia will mobilise national funds to end landmine and UXO issues in the country as planned in 2025.

Cambodia needs to clear over 700 square kilometres of landmine-contaminated areas and more than 1,000 square kilometres of explosive remnants of war (ERW) to achieve its target of a mine-free country by 2025.

From 1996 to 2021, Cambodia was able to release roughly 2,379 square kilometres of landmine/ERW contaminated land for productive purposes such as agriculture, resettlement, roads, schools, and other social infrastructure.

On this land, over 1.1 million anti-personnel mines, more than 26,000 anti-tank mines, and nearly 3 million ERW including cluster munitions were found and destroyed, benefiting almost 7.5 million people, but more than 1 million others still live in fear and work in areas contaminated by landmines and ERW.

Source: Agency Kampuchea Press

The Special Envoy of the ASEAN Chair on Myanmar H.E. Prak Sokhonn has announced to welcome the State Administration Council (SAC)’s declaration of Myanmar’s Year for Peace in 2022.

H.E. Prak Sokhonn, also Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Cambodia, made the announcement during a briefing on the outcomes of his second working visit to Myanmar from June 30 to July 02, 2022 for foreign diplomatic corps accredited to Cambodia and media members, at the ministry’s office in Phnom Penh this afternoon.

At the same time, H.E. Prak Sokhonn also expressed welcome to the commitment of SAC to further promote peace talks and engagement with the ethnic armed organisations in the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA).

H.E. Prak Sokhonn informed Cambodia’s good will to dispatch voluntary medical doctors to provide COVID-19 vaccines to people in Myanmar, but this will apply under ASEAN’s mechanism.

In his briefing, H.E. Prak Sokhonn expressed his disappointment that he failed to meet with H.E. Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi and Ms. Su Su Lwin, while Myanmar’s SAC said Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi remains under judicial procedure, and Ms. Su Su Lwin has health problem.

In his conclusion, H.E. Prak Sokhonn affirmed that his second working visit to Myanmar was concluded with some progress.

“We could meet with different parties in the conflict in Myanmar, and discussed more agendas than the previous visit, especially we could open a gate for political negotiations on the crisis,” he underlined.

During his stay in Myanmar, H.E. Prak Sokhonn and his colleagues from ASEAN Secretariat have held many discussions, mainly on the Five-Point Consensus (5PC) adopted by the ASEAN leaders.

According to a statement released recently by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, H.E. Prak Sokhonn also paid a courtesy call on Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, Chairman of SAC.

H.E. Prak Sokhonn had a fruitful discussion with H.E. Wunna Maung Lwin, Foreign Minister of Myanmar and H.E. Ko Ko Hlaing, Chairman of the Myanmar Task Force on Humanitarian Assistance to Myanmar.

The meeting with key leaders of Myanmar had covered various important topics; including the importance for further commitment by the SAC to move forward the progress in the implementation of 5PC, developments of political situation in Myanmar, the follow-up on the outcomes of the Consultative Meeting on Humanitarian Assistance to Myanmar on May 6, 2022 in Phnom Penh, and approaches on how the UN Specialised Agencies and international Non-Governmental Organisations can engage in Myanmar-led humanitarian work, including the Joint Need Assessment in the hard-to-reach areas.

On the same trip, H.E. Prak Sokhonn also held a meeting with H.E. Yar Pyae, Chairman of National Solidarity and Peace-making Committee (NSPNC) during which they focused on some agendas, especially on the progress of engagement with the Ethnic Armed Organisations (EAOs) in the NCA, the sharing of Cambodia’s experiences in implementing the Win-Win policy of Prime Minister Hun Sen, and the role of National Solidarity and Peace-making Committee in delivery of humanitarian assistance and vaccination campaign to the people of Myanmar in the hard-to-reach areas.

After this meeting, H.E. Prak Sokhonn had another talk with the representatives of seven ethnic armed organisations, which have signed the NCA with the SAC. They exchanged views on political situation in Myanmar, especially how to advance peace talks for the benefit of all people in the country. He also extensively deliberated on several key issues, such as the developments of political and humanitarian situation on the ground in each state and region where these parties cover, the progress of on-going work and the contribution of political parties in the process of NCA, means to ease the situation in Myanmar and to advance peace process with representatives of seven political parties in Myanmar.

Besides, H.E. Prak Sokhonn met with the foreign diplomats from France, the U.S., EU and Australia to exchange views on the progress of 5PC, including provision of humanitarian assistance to the people of Myanmar.

Source: Agency Kampuchea Press

Deputy Prime Minister H.E. Prak Sokhonn, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation said a letter to his Myanmar counterpart on the 55th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and Related Meetings to be hosted by Cambodia from July 30 to Aug. 6, 2022 has been sent but it is just an explanation letter.

Speaking at a briefing on the outcomes of his second working visit to Myanmar for foreign diplomatic corps accredited to Cambodia and media members here this afternoon, H.E. Prak Sokhonn said as the Chair of ASEAN and with the consensus from other ASEAN counterparts, if there is no more progress on the implementation of the Five-Point Consensus (5PC), we can invite only a non-political representative of Myanmar to attend this forthcoming meeting.

“In the letter, I made an explanation to Myanmar’s Foreign Minister H.E. U Wunna Maung Lwin [over the invitation of non-political representative],” he said.

As the Chair of ASEAN this year, Cambodia hosted the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Retreat on Feb. 16-17, 2022 in Phnom Penh in a hybrid format without Myanmar’s representative.

Source: Agency Kampuchea Press

Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation H.E. Prak Sokhonn said the letter of invitation to his Russian counterpart H.E. Sergei Lavrov to attend the 12th East Asia Summit Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and the 29th ASEAN Regional Forum in Cambodia has already been sent.

“H.E. Sergei Lavrov’s invitation letter has been sent, but for the reply, I have not got any report from my colleagues yet as I had been on a week-long foreign trip,” said here this afternoon H.E. Prak Sokhonn at a briefing on the outcomes of his second working visit to Myanmar for foreign diplomatic corps accredited to Cambodia and media members.

As scheduled, Cambodia is going to host the 55th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (AMM) and Related Meetings, including ASEAN Post Ministerial Conferences, ASEAN Plus Three Foreign Minister’s Meeting, East Asia Summit Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, ASEAN Regional Forum and so on from July 30 to Aug. 6, 2022.

East Asia Summit is the Indo-Pacific’s premier forum for strategic dialogue. This meeting has 18 members – the ten ASEAN countries including Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam along with Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, Russia and the United States.

Besides, the ASEAN Regional Forum is an important platform for security dialogue in the Indo-Pacific. Its 27 members are the 10 ASEAN Member States; the 10 ASEAN dialogue partners (Australia, Canada, China, the European Union, India, Japan, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, Russia and the United States); Bangladesh, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Mongolia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Timor-Leste; and one ASEAN observer Papua New Guinea.

Source: Agency Kampuchea Press