Cambodia Inaugurates New Chinese-funded Airport Serving Tourism in Angkor Wat

Cambodia inaugurated its newest and biggest airport on November 16th 2023, the Chinese-financed project meant to serve as an upgraded gateway to the country’s major tourist attraction, the centuries-old Angkor Wat temple complex in the northwestern province of Siem Reap.

The Siem Reap-Angkor International Airport is located on 700 hectares (1,730 acres) of land about 40 kilometers (25 miles) east of Angkor Wat and boasts a 3,600-meter- (11,810-foot) long runway. It can handle 7 million passengers a year, with plans to augment it to handle 12 million passengers annually from 2040.

The airport began operations Oct. 16, with the first flight to land coming from neighboring Thailand. The old airport it replaces was about 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) from the famous tourist site.

The inauguration was presided over by Prime Minister Hun Manet, Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia Wang Wentian, the governor of China’s Yunnan province, Wang Yubo, and other officials.

Tourism is one of the main pillars supporting Cambodia’s economy. According to the Ministry of Tourism, Cambodia received some 3.5 million international tourists in the first eight months of 2023, while for the whole of 2019 — the last year before the coronavirus pandemic — it received some 6.6 million foreign visitors.

China is Cambodia’s most important ally and benefactor, with strong influence in its economy, shown by numerous Chinese-funded projects, hotels and casinos in the capital, Phnom Penh, and elsewhere around the country. China’s state banks have financed airports, roads and other infrastructure built with Chinese loans. More than 40% of Cambodia’s $10 billion in foreign debt is owed to China.

The new airport, built at a cost of about $1.1 billion, was financed by Angkor International Airport (Cambodia) Co., Ltd., an affiliate of China’s Yunnan Investment Holdings Ltd, under a 55-year build-operate-transfer deal.

The project is part of the Belt and Road Initiative, the ambitious program that involves Chinese companies building transportation, energy and other infrastructure overseas funded by Chinese development bank loans. Its goal is to grow trade and the economy by improving China’s connections with the rest of the world in a 21st-century version of the Silk Road trading routes from China to the Middle East and onto Europe.

Another Chinese-funded airport is being constructed at a cost of $1.5 billion to serve the capital. The new Phnom Penh international airport, formally known as the Techo International Airport, is set on 2,600 hectares (6,425 acres) and scheduled for completion in 2024. (RFA)

UN Spotlights Scale of Cambodia’s Cyber Trafficking Industry

The United Nations has cast a harsh spotlight on the cyber trafficking industry that has blossomed in Southeast Asia in recent years, estimating that the trade has ensnared some 100,000 victims in Cambodia alone.

In a sweeping new report on online scam operations in the region, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights seeks to frame the online trafficking networks as an urgent international human rights threat that demands the attention of both national governments and global advocacy groups.

It argues that because persons trafficked into the operations effectively carry out the crimes — using the internet and social media as tools to help orchestrate various scams to take money from unwitting victims in other countries — they are often treated as complicit in their new and home countries. Yet the report urges officials to treat them as victims too.

“People who have been trafficked into online forced criminality face threats to their right to life, liberty and security of the person,” the U.N. report says. “They are subject to torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment, arbitrary detention, sexual violence, forced labour and other forms of labour exploitation as well as a range of other human rights violations and abuses.”

Prime Minister Hun Manet’s government has quickly gone on the defensive against the report, playing down the scale of the problem. Both the report and experts on the issue say Cambodia has yet to show the necessary resolve to root out and shut down the trafficking networks.

One reason for that, according to the report, is that officials and other powerbrokers in Cambodia may be sharing in the significant profits. It estimates that scam centers operating in Southeast Asia generate billions of US dollars in revenue.

“Corruption undermines accountability and threatens the rule of law; it often precedes the human rights violation, exacerbates its effects, and is a barrier to access to justice and remedy,” says the report, which also focused on trafficking in Myanmar and Laos and functioning scam centers in those countries.

“Reports indicate that there has been a lack of investigation into claims of collusion between the criminal actors behind these scam operations and senior government officials, politicians, local law enforcement and influential businesspersons.”

Al Jazeera, which conducted a groundbreaking investigation on Cambodia’s “cyber slaves” in 2022, found that some of the wealthy businessmen who own the compounds where scam rings operate had close relationships with former Prime Minister Hun Sen, who handed power to his son after July’s election.

The report describes how the COVID-19 pandemic fueled the growth of the industry in Southeast Asia. Many young professionals across the region were desperate for work — becoming prime targets for online recruiters promising fake jobs — while people across the world were bored and spending hours connected to the internet on their phones, computers or other devices.

The pandemic also forced casinos across Asia to close, sending Chinese investors looking for new, and often illicit, business opportunities online and in places with limited regulation and legal risk, like Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos, the report explains.

“Faced with new operational realities, criminal gangs increasingly targeted migrant workers, who were stranded in these countries and were out of work due to border and business closures, to work in the scam centers,” it says.

Cambodia’s Interior Ministry announced an aggressive campaign to confront the cyber scams in August 2022.

Chou Bun Eng, a secretary of state at the Ministry of Interior and vice chair of the National Committee for Combating Human Trafficking, told VOA Khmer in September that authorities had since responded to more than a thousand requests for intervention and rescued more than 1,500 people.

She dismissed the report’s claim that “credible estimates” have “indicated at least 100,000 people forcibly involved in online scams” in Cambodia.

“We already know that Cambodia is not big, and for businesses and locations in the provinces, there are not many,” she said in an interview. “We ask, where are those people?”

Chou Bun Eng added that the government was convening experts to come up with a more accurate estimate and would send a report back to the United Nations.

The issue of cyber trafficking was raised during a meeting between new Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin and Hun Manet in Phnom Penh last week. An X post from Thailand’s Foreign Affairs Ministry said the leaders discussed a range of security issues, including joint efforts to “crack down online scams.”

Jason Tower, the Burma country director for the United States Institute of Peace, which monitors cyber trafficking across the region, said he was somewhat skeptical that 100,000 people had been trafficked into forced labor in Cambodia’s scam networks. But he said that figure may capture the total number of people involved in the industry in some capacity over a period of years.

Still, he said the Cambodian government’s “pretty strong pushback” to the report was “unfortunate,” both for advocates and for other countries in Asia who want greater protections for their citizens in Cambodia, and more commitment to freeing those trapped by traffickers.

“My understanding is there’s still a lot of victims and that law enforcement in neighboring countries is still putting pressure on the Cambodian authorities about very specific victims that they’re trying to recover and that there’s a lot of foot dragging and that things just are not happening anywhere near quickly enough,” Tower told VOA Khmer.

“So you know, the problems certainly have not gone away, and I think that a lot more could be done to send out a very strong message that simply there’s no tolerance for this in the country, and I don’t think we’re anywhere near there yet.”

The U.N. report says that as of July 2023, online scam centers were reportedly operating in at least eight Cambodian provinces: Phnom Penh, Kandal, Pursat, Koh Kong, Bavet, Preah Sihanouk, Oddar Meanchey and Svay Rieng.

It also specifically named two special economic zones believed to be hosting cyber scam facilities, the Dara Sakor SEZ and Henge Thmorda SEZ. Dara Sakor’s primary developer is the Chinese-owned Union Development Group. Henge Thmorda appears to refer to the MDS Thmor Da SEZ, which has previously been linked to human trafficking and is owned by Cambodian tycoon Try Pheap.

Jacob Sims, the regional director for the International Justice Mission in the Asia Pacific, said the organization has seen “commendable” improvements from the Cambodian government in its response to cyber trafficking.

Among the signs of progress is opening a hotline to help victims seek help, and making greater efforts to identify victims, he said. And large cyber slavery compounds in Sihanoukville and Phnom Penh have been shut down, to some extent.

“However, there is also significant evidence that many of these compounds simply relocated to new areas within Cambodia,” Jacob Sims said.

“At a high level, accountability for compound owners and crime bosses is key. One compound may close, but another will likely open in its place as long as the risk to operating and facilitating this criminal industry remains low.”

Sims said he thought the 100,000 figure “seems imminently plausible,” given public reports, witness testimonies, the size of the broader online gambling industry.

Tower noted there’s also a growing financial pressure on Cambodia to address the problem. China has ramped up its efforts to warn citizens about the risks of being trafficking in Southeast Asia, leading to travel advisories and even a blockbuster movie about Chinese nationals lured into a scam compound through the promise of high-paying jobs.

“So part of the strategy is to just terrify Chinese people, you know, such that nobody wants to go to Southeast Asia,” Sims said.

This has posed a significant threat to Cambodia’s tourism industry, which is focused largely on Chinese visitors and has yet to fully recover from the global pandemic.

Western countries are also paying more attention to the problem, with countries like the U.S. losing billions annually to online scams — as well as having nationals recruited into the cybercrime syndicates, said Tower.

Both Sims and Tower were hopeful that the U.N. report would bring greater attention and resources to combating the trafficking rings.

“I think that adding the human rights lens will probably get a lot more Western actors to look at these issues,” Tower said. “And it will add, I think, another layer to the response.”

Source: VOA Khmer

Cambodia exports 10 tons plus of seafood and agricultural products to China under RCEP agreement

Following the signing of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP), Cambodia exports seafood and fishery products Others to China, a total of about 10 tons. This is according to officials from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.

The RCEP is a comprehensive regional economic partnership agreement that includes the 10 ASEAN countries and China, Japan, South Korea and Australia. And New Zealand. The agreement entered into force on January 1, 2022. The RCEP member countries will have a gross domestic product of $ 26.2 trillion, or 30% of global GDP

In the opening speech, study and dissemination of post-harvest fisheries enterprises under CAPFish Capture on September 17, 2023 Undersecretary of State and spokeswoman for the Ministry of Agriculture, Ms. Im Rachana, told reporters that Cambodia exports seafood and fishery products. Other products include shrimp, prawns, trout and eels to China, and the government is preparing to streamline food export procedures. Similar to the European Union.

“It’s great to push our fishery products market to the European market, as you know,” the spokesman said. We have stated in the past that we have worked very closely with UNIDO through fisheries products. Well, it’s a job that takes time and the challenges are still there but we are solving the problem That’s all. ”

The Fisheries Administration and UNIDO are implementing a post-harvest fisheries development project worth more than $ 16 million. As part of the CAPFish Capture project, an EU-funded fisheries administration program, the largest fisheries development program. In Asia, with $ 120 million.

CAPFish Capture stakeholders say RCEP could pave way for Cambodian agricultural exports Chinese market under the technical and material support of CAPFish Capture, which has been implemented for four years. Some CAPFish Capture artisans say they have already exported their products to France and the United States. Australia and Canada in small numbers and some say they want to export their agricultural products to China as well. Where people like to eat freshwater fish.

Pum Sotha, director general of the Fisheries Administration, said that the recent export of agricultural products to China started from an agreement. RCEP, an initiative of the Beijing government. He added that Cambodia has also signed other agreements with the Chinese customs to be able to import agricultural products. In the Chinese market.

“We have to sign a protocol with all the Chinese side. In general, the products we can export to China,” he said. That we agree with the GACC [General Administration of Customs, China] means that all Chinese customs all products All.

Mr. Khov Kuong, Deputy Director of Fisheries Administration of the Ministry of Agriculture, who implements the CAPFish Capture project, said that RCEP has contributed to the Cambodia produces agricultural products, but he said the standards and food safety must be adhered to.

“We can export to China if there is trade facilitation without import tariffs, import tariffs, but Standards must remain the same, must be chemical-free, harmless, must have a standard that does not affect health “

He added that the RCEP agreement would also further boost the export of agricultural products by handicraft owners and fishery processing enterprises in CAPFish Project.

“I mean, when we created this project, it was not aimed at the RCEP, but Contribution is, of course, because within the framework of all economic cooperation, the growth of “Economic activity in exports and imports.”

Ky Sereywat, an economist at the Royal Academy of Cambodia, told VOA that Cambodia’s agricultural exports to China are The beginning of the RCEP agreement process and the growth of Cambodia’s agricultural market, despite the number of exports at the moment Recently, it is still small.

He hopes the government will further boost exports through the RCEP agreement.

“We see that our agriculture is still limited,” he said. So when we have a market, we encourage producers to produce more and more production helps our farmers More in the production and breeding of all these animals. In this case, the Ministry of Agriculture must also work urgently to support production, support to the market.

The purpose of the RCEP is to lower tariffs, open trade in services and promote investment to help To developing countries to keep up with other countries in the world.

Source: VOA Khmer
Featured Photo: Hul Reaksmey / VOA

Government to encourage people in the informal economy to enter the informal economy to improve livelihoods

VOA, PHNOM PENH – In the formulation of a new strategy of the government on the development of the informal economy for 2023 to 2028, those who are doing business in The informal economy will be rolled into an economic system with the support of the relevant authorities.

The new strategy will contribute to improving people’s lives and achieving sustainable development. Resistant to various crises. This is according to the results of the plenary session of the Council of Ministers on September 20 .

Government spokesman Pen Bona told VOA that the National Strategy for Informal Economic Development 2023-2028 is a supportive one. To the people who are engaged in the informal economy to grow like those who are engaged in the informal economy.

He said: “The government of the seventh mandate is to prepare a national strategy on informal economic development for 2023 to 2028. Why did he prepare it, because the Royal Government intends to support all those who engage in informal business so that he Get the same benefits as you in the system.

He added: “So recently, when there was an announcement from some authorities for them to register, he was worried. Worried, he was worried that he would have to pay taxes, pay this and that. Therefore, Samdech Thipadei, you have suspended the registration of anything, wait for the preparation of this national strategic policy and then leave. “Once.”

Those who rely on the informal economy refer to small business owners or market and street vendors; and Tricycle riders and so on.

According to a press release from the Plenary Session of the Council of Ministers, which was released to the public on Wednesday, the strategy National Informal Economic Development will respond to some challenges and realities and pay close attention On the well-being of the people and supporting the informal economy after the Kovid 19 crisis.

President of the Independent Association of Informal Economy, Mr. Vorn Pov, applauded the new government’s attention to the business community. Informal economy as a new context to further push them into the systemic economy With the monitoring of professional officials and local authorities.

He added that the National Strategy for Informal Economic Development 2023-2028 of the Royal Government has been achieved in response. An important one for people in the informal economy as they are facing a number of problems, including the recession Declining incomes and the pressure of rising commodity prices in the aftermath of the 19 Kovid outbreak.

“His needs for informal economists are social services, both economic, social and cultural rights and social justice,” he said. For theirs too. This is necessary to get his economy back to normal, as it was before the covid state.

The launch of a five-year informal economic development strategy also aims to strengthen your productivity and resilience. Make a living in the informal economy and accelerate economic participation in the system to ensure the progress of business, trade, investment and cooperation. Business, occupation and livelihood in Cambodia.

This national strategy prioritizes five key points, including:

  • Configuring, editing and setting up mechanisms to facilitate access to the system
  • Reducing the burden on compliance
  • Providing support and support to those who have entered the system
  • Capacity building and support for those who enter the system
  • Strengthening and expanding outreach and promoting awareness and participation.

The Royal Government considers the introduction of this new national strategy as a pioneer in the development of the informal economy to Increase cooperation between ministries, institutions, the private sector, national and international organizations, and establish relations with various associations.

2-Story Structure Discovered On Third Terrace Of Bayon Temple

(AKP Phnom Penh, 9/18/2023) — APSARA National Authority’s restoration team has discovered a new structure that was never known before, i.e. the construction of two overlapping stone walls on the third terrace of Bayon Temple.

According to the authority’s news release issued this morning, this structure was found while the technical team was strengthening the temple’s structure on the third terrace.

Miss Meng Sovanlylin, an architect and technician working on the third terrace of Bayon Temple, said this was the second time that technicians had found a two-story structure on the third terrace which differs from other ancient temples.

This structure has one platform, and another platform has been built from the outside, and changes in the architectural layout during construction have also been noted, she added.

Technicians have observed that the pre-built platform is less decorative, with only stone carvings, while the later-built platform has a more beautiful design.

Architects have speculated that the addition of stone wall may have been due to the builders’ change for a better design. By Phal Sophanith

Source: ក្រសួងព័ត៌មាន

From Angkor Wat to Sihanoukville: Cambodia’s Tourism Industry Flourishes

Cambodia has a rich cultural heritage and natural beauty, and is witnessing a remarkable growth in its tourism sector. According to the Cambodia Ministry of Tourism, the country received over 280,000 international visitors in 2022, a 10% increase from the previous year. The main attraction for tourists is the Angkor Archaeological Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that covers 400 square kilometers and contains the majestic temple of Angkor Wat, the largest religious monument in the world. The park also features other ancient temples, monuments and structures that showcase the Khmer civilization that flourished from the 9th to the 15th century.

Angkor Wat, which means “Capital Temple” in Khmer, was built by King Suryavarman II in the early 12th century as his state temple and mausoleum. It was originally dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu, but later became a Buddhist temple. The temple is renowned for its intricate carvings, towers and galleries that depict various scenes from Hindu mythology, history and culture. The temple also faces west, which is unusual for Khmer temples and suggests that it was associated with death and the afterlife. Angkor Wat is considered a symbol of Cambodia and its national pride.

However, Angkor Wat is not the only destination that attracts tourists to Cambodia. The country also offers diverse natural landscapes, such as mountains, forests, rivers and beaches. One of the most popular coastal areas is Sihanoukville, a city located in the south of Cambodia on the Gulf of Thailand. Sihanoukville is named after King Norodom Sihanouk, who initiated its development in the 1950s as a port and resort town. Sihanoukville has several sandy beaches, islands and coral reefs that offer opportunities for swimming, snorkeling, diving and fishing. The city also has a vibrant nightlife, with bars, restaurants and casinos catering to different tastes and budgets.

Sihanoukville; by Ben Stern on Unsplash

Cambodia’s tourism industry is expected to continue growing in the coming years, as the country invests in improving its infrastructure, services and facilities. The government has also implemented measures to protect its cultural and natural heritage, such as relocating some communities living in Angkor Archaeological Park to preserve its authenticity and integrity. Moreover, Cambodia has established diplomatic relations and cooperation agreements with many countries, especially in Asia, to promote tourism exchange and development. Cambodia hopes to welcome more tourists from around the world and share its unique charm and hospitality.

South-South Cooperation boosts expertise to protect plant health and livelihoods in Cambodia and Sri Lanka 

(12/09/2023, FAO) Smallholder farmers are important food producers globally. However, they often struggle to meet international standards on trade and related plant health requirements. Bridging the gap between smallholder farms and the global market is now more important than ever. Through South-South and Triangular Cooperation (SSTC) programmes, producers, exporters and technical experts are brought together to share valuable know-how and work together to strengthen agricultural production.

One key, but often overlooked area, for this critical expertise is plant health and plant protection.

Robust and up-to-date phytosanitary measures are crucial to regulating and preventing the introduction and spread of pests to plants and plant products. The International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) is a multilateral treaty that aims to protect plants by preventing the introduction and spread of pests, and the IPPC Secretariat hosted at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), works to ensure all countries have the capacity to implement phytosanitary measures, thereby facilitating trade of agricultural products.

One FAO-China South-South Cooperation (SSC) project is putting farmers at the centre of this process. Ensuring that agricultural products meet the required phytosanitary standards needed for international trade offers farmers an opportunity for earning additional income. The SSC project brought Chinese experts to Cambodia and Sri Lanka to share new technologies and products related to plant health and best practices in their use.

Here are two examples of how South-South Cooperation is helping farmers meet phytosanitary measures and ensure plant health:

A preliminary Phytosanitary Capacity Evaluation in Cambodia identified gaps in the phytosanitary system. The information was used to organize training courses to boost phytosanitary knowledge and technologies. ©IPPC Secretariat.
In Sri Lanka, trainees learned about molecular diagnosis techniques. ©Zhihong Li

Fighting Banana Fusarium Wilt disease in Cambodia

For decades, farmers in Cambodia have been struggling with Banana Fusarium Wilt, a devastating disease affecting their second largest agricultural export, according to the World Trade Organization. Banana Fusarium is a soil-borne fungus that causes the lower leaves of the banana plant to wilt and turn yellow. As the disease advances, more of the leaves become yellow and die, leaving behind a “skirt” of dead leaves. The spread of this disease severely impacted banana production and exports in tropical areas of Southeast Asia, including Cambodia.

To combat Banana Fusarium, the IPPC Secretariat, implemented a project with the help of experts from China to improve Cambodia’s entire phytosanitary system. The project commenced in 2019 with a Phytosanitary Capacity Evaluation, which helped to identify the gaps in the phytosanitary system. This information was then used to organize training courses on phytosanitary techniques and technologies in integrated pest management (IPM) to combat the disease.

Fifteen selected Cambodian National Plant Protection Organization officers learned monitoring, early detection and laboratory identification techniques, as well as IPM techniques. They also learned about the process for detecting and quarantining Banana Fusarium upon entry of imported bananas.  

Thanks to this training, farmers detected the disease at an earlier stage, enabling them to implement control measures before it could spread and cause significant damage. These new technologies showed how effective surveillance and pest management could contain Banana Fusarium and prevent its spread.

Experts led a training and field investigation to better prevent and control the spread of fruit flies, the main insect pest impacting mango production and exports in Sri Lanka. ©IPPC Secretariat

Preventing and controlling fruit flies in Sri Lanka

Through the SSC project in Sri Lanka, Chinese plant health experts offered training courses and field demonstrations on trap monitoring, morphological and molecular diagnosis, heat and irradiation treatments and IPM techniques that control fruit flies, a rampant pest in Sri Lanka’s mango plantations. Participants from the National Plant Quarantine Service learned to set up and check fruit fly traps in an orchard.

Since then, they have moved on to implementing better pest management techniques of fruit flies and improving the phytosanitary standards in the country because antiquated legislation of plant protection was harming the volume of exports. The country was still relying on an ordinance dating back to 1981, falling behind the current international norms. Now, with a targeted approach to boost phytosanitary capacities, the SSC project has helped Sri Lanka significantly improve its international and cross-border trade.

With this new pest surveillance methods, diagnostic techniques, plant health treatments and environmentally friendly IPM, the capacity of prevention and control of fruit flies in Sri Lanka has been greatly improved.

South-South Cooperation is a framework for spreading knowledge and expertise among developing countries. The FAO-China SSC project, implemented together with the IPPC Secretariat, demonstrated how strengthening the phytosanitary capacity allowed for safer and smoother trade in both Cambodia and Sri Lanka.  

Cambodia transfers knowledge to help Ukraine defuse bombs

The Russian invasion of Ukraine As a result, many unexploded bombs have been found in about 40% of Ukraine’s territory. 

Cambodian expert in Poland is showing the use of demining equipment to Arseny Dyachenko from the State Emergency Service in Ukraine, along with his co-workers which on that day. Djachenko also demonstrated how the Japanese-made Advanced Landmine Imaging System, or ALIS, works.

Djachenko explains that the machine will allow us to see metal objects in the ground and show spatial lines. From the survey using the radar signal method (Ground Penetrating Radar – GPR) when viewed through the survey screen. We had to assess whether the find was a mine or just scrap metal.

Advanced demining equipment and assistance with its use are of great importance for Ukraine. According to the assessment of the Ukrainian government Mines and unexploded ordnance resulting from the Russian war on Ukraine It can be found in 40% of the area in Ukrainian territory.

Djachenko said: “Right now, our urgent need is to There is both personal protective equipment. Mine clearing machine and local metal detectors like ALIS.”

The Cambodian Mine Action Center (CMCA) has provided demining training to Ukraine. After completing training in Cambodia They traveled to Poland to complete the course.

Oum Phamro, deputy director of the CMCA, explained that Cambodia has dealt with landmines and unexploded ordnance. As a result of the war that ended in the late 1990s, or about 30 years ago, during the past decade Experienced Cambodian mine clearer Have worked in many countries in Africa and the Middle East.

Speaking to VOA, Famro said: “Ukraine needs to be specialized. including training, equipment, and support from other countries to solve problems We think that after the war ends They will face many problems. Considering the situation there (Ukraine), I think it will be a big problem.”

Although Cambodia has good relations with both Russia and China. However, Cambodia joins nearly 100 member states in the United Nations. in supporting the resolution condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Cambodian experts have been involved in demining projects. which is a supported project both from the government and Japanese developers.

Motoyuki Sato, developer of the ALIS demining device, estimates that Ukraine may need massive amounts of such equipment in the coming years.

Sato estimated that “even after the war ended, The demining operation may continue for more than 10 years to speed up the cleanup. I hope the ALIS device will play a part in this process.”

Maintaining the security of the territory It is complicated and expensive in the long run. Many countries, including the United States, Germany, Canada and France, have provided demining assistance to Ukraine. This year, Japan has allocated $45 million to support demining efforts in Eastern European countries.

Refer to the latest assessment. from the United Nations and the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine It is expected that the clearance of hazardous materials existing in Ukraine It could cost as much as $30 billion and take decades to complete.

  • Source: VOA

Thailand and Cambodia Strengthen Cooperation Against Transnational Crime

BANGKOK (NNT) – Thailand and Cambodia have reaffirmed their commitment to improving cooperation in combating transnational crime. The commitment seeks to strengthen stability and security in both countries by encouraging closer cooperation.

Royal Thai Police Deputy Commissioner Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn has recently met with Cambodia’s National Police Chief Sar Thet to discuss strengthening relations between both sides, especially on the issue of combating cross-border crime. Pol Gen Surachate said that both sides expressed their intention to work together on this important issue, while the Cambodian police chief shared a similar resolve to strengthen coordination to tackle illegal activities in the region.

Am Sam Ath, deputy director for monitoring at the rights group LICADHO, stressed the importance of international cooperation to effectively resolve issues such as drug offenses, human trafficking, and money laundering. He stated that it is critical to solve these issues by enhancing the application of laws, particularly the safe village-commune policy. He added that stronger communication with all sides is critical to tackling these problems.

The Thai-Cambodian collaboration is also supported by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, who has called for sustained and increased coordination in counterterrorism operations and combating illegal cross-jurisdictional activity during a bilateral meeting with Indonesian President Joko Widodo at the 43rd ASEAN Summit this week.

  • Information and Source
  • Reporter : Krajangwit  Johjit
  • Rewriter : Thammarat Thadaphrom
  • National News Bureau : http://thainews.prd.go.th

Hun Manet: Cambodia to become a high-income country by 2050

New Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet has announced his vision to make Cambodia a high-income country by 2050. Speaking at an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) business forum in Jakarta, the Western-educated leader said that Cambodia had recently launched an overarching national economic vision to “safeguard the nature of hard-gained peace and accelerate national development to achieve the milestone of becoming a high-income country by 2050”.

The vision, referred to as the “pentagon strategy”, involves developing human capital, the digital economy, and inclusivity and sustainability. Hun Manet, who took over power from his father Hun Sen last month after a lopsided general election that all opposition parties were barred from contesting, said that Cambodia has now evolved into a lower-middle-income nation with economic growth rates of 7 percent1.

In his first cabinet meeting, Hun Manet pledged wide-ranging economic reforms aimed at making Cambodia a “high-income country” by 2050. “The next 25 years will be a new cycle for Cambodia,” he said in a televised speech.

This ambitious vision has been met with both optimism and skepticism. While some see it as a sign of progress and development for the Southeast Asian country, others question the feasibility of such a goal and the lack of concrete plans for achieving it. Only time will tell if Hun Manet’s vision for Cambodia will come to fruition.

Photo Credit: Ministry of Information, Cambodia