Symposium on Friendly Relations for the 60th Anniversary of Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between China and Cambodia Held in Phnom Penh

From June 21st to 22nd, 2018, the symposium on friendly relations between China and Cambodia was jointly hosted by the Confucius Institute Headquarters(Hanban) and the Royal Academy of Cambodia in Phnom Penh, to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries.

Opening ceremony

The two-day symposium was attended by more than 200 representatives of renowned experts on China-Cambodia relations and international education of Chinese from 12 institutions like Beijing Foreign Studies University, Sun Yat-sen University, Tianjin Normal University, China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, as well as ministers of Cambodian government and scholars in politics, economy and education of Cambodia. Bin Chhin, Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Acting Minster of Office of the Council of Ministers; Li Jie, the Chargé D'affaires of the Chinese Embassy in Cambodia; Sok Touch, President of the Royal Academy of Cambodia and Ma Jianfei, Deputy Chief Executive of the Confucius Institute Headquarters and Deputy Director-General of Hanban were present and delivered speeches at the opening ceremony.

Sok Touch firstly gave a welcome speech. He stated that the symposium on bilateral friendly relations and college student artistic performance held to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Cambodia is to further enhance the friendship, mutual understanding, and equal treatment between the people of two countries on the basis of mutual respect and mutually beneficial cooperation. The symposium also concretely demonstrated that two governments firmly and vigorously boost China-Cambodia comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

Ma Jianfei pointed out that under both President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Hun Sen's personal care, great importance attached by the two governments and strong support of all sectors of society, the Confucius Institute at Royal Academy of Cambodia has fulfilled its mission and pursued innovative development. It has become a bridge of culture and mind between China and Cambodia, and played a unique role in consolidating and developing the traditional friendly relations between the two countries. At present, China and Cambodia’s all-round and in-depth cooperation in broad areas has continued to develop. In particular, with the deep engagement of Cambodia in the Belt and Road Initiative, the economic and trade cooperation between the two countries has increased, which provides a valuable opportunity and higher requirement for the development of Confucius Institute. It is hoped that both China and Cambodia will further their sincere cooperation and joint efforts to continuously improve the quality and level of the Confucius Institute and cultivate more local talents in various fields, so as to make new greater contributions to strengthen the public opinion foundation between the two countries featuring everlasting friendship, enhance mutual understanding and friendship of their peoples, and promote an unbreakable community with a shared future.

Li Jie mentioned that China and Cambodia have long been in a great rapport since ancient times. With the continuous deepening of cooperation in recent years, the developmental strategies of the two countries have become highly compatible, and China’s Belt and Road Initiative has accelerated to incorporate with Cambodia’s “Four-Corner Strategy” to effectively promote the precisely and mutually beneficial cooperation and enhance the well-being of their peoples. The exchanges and cooperation between the two countries in regards to culture, education and other fields have developed rapidly and yielded fruitful results in people-to-people bonds. Two parties will take the 60th anniversary as an opportunity to jointly promote bilateral relations in all-round and all-weather way.

On behalf of the Cambodian government, Bin Chhin cordially welcomed all attendees and congratulated the opening of the symposium. He passionately reviewed the cultural affinity between China and Cambodia over the past 1000 years and the path leads to the friendly exchange since the establishment of diplomatic relations six decades ago. He also pointed out that the friendly relations between China and Cambodia are carefully nurtured by leaders and people of the two countries. China and Cambodia are good brothers, neighbors, and partners, as well as permanent partners. The only truth that lies ahead is the friendly cooperation between the two countries. There is still broader prospect and huge space for further enhancing pragmatic cooperation in various fields. The symposium has served as a platform for scholars and has broadened the scope of cooperation between the two countries to secure their peoples a better life.

The symposium focuses on topics such as “the history of China-Cambodian friendship”, “China-Cambodia economic and political relations,” and “professional curriculum development for master program of Chinese language in Cambodia” through case study and themed discussion. By doing so, a comprehensive review would be made on the development of the mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries in various fields and the increasingly active cultural and educational exchanges since six decades ago. An in-depth analysis on the “win-win” opportunities brought by the Belt and Road Initiative would also be explored in order to offer insights on the establishment of Master of Chinese programs with four concentrations of Chinese teacher education, linguistics, literatures, and translation in Cambodia.

On the afternoon of June 21, Bin Chhin met delegation of the Confucius Institute Headquarters (Hanban) and Chinese experts who attended the symposium at his office.

Bin Chhin greets delegation of the Confucius Institute Headquarters (Hanban)

On the evenings of June 22nd and 23rd, the Student Art Troupe of Beijing Normal University and the Cambodian Ministry of Culture and Arts will jointly perform a show that features college students from the two countries.