S'pore and Cambodia to expand cooperation in areas like fintech

Singapore and Cambodia will expand cooperation especially in new areas such as connectivity, infrastructure development, agri-trade, fintech and digital economy.

Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan is on an official visit to the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh, at the invitation of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Prak Sokhonn.

Dr Balakrishnan will also attend the two-day Asean Foreign Ministers' Retreat starting from today. The retreat is the first in a series of meetings that Cambodia will be hosting as chair of Asean this year.

During Dr Balakrishnan's meeting with Mr Prak Sokhonn yesterday, both men reaffirmed the excellent state of bilateral relations. Singapore and Cambodia celebrated the 55th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2020.

"Delighted to meet my old friend Prak Sokhonn..." Dr Balakrishnan said in a Facebook post yesterday.

"We discussed our excellent bilateral relations, as well as regional and international issues. In this year of post-pandemic recovery, we agreed to deepen our bilateral cooperation in new areas including connectivity, infrastructure, agri-trade, fintech and digital economy," he said.

He also expressed hope that 2022 would be a year of post-pandemic recovery for both countries. The two leaders commended the mutual support rendered throughout the crisis, including Singapore's contribution of medical supplies and equipment to Cambodia, according to a press statement by Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday.

They welcomed the resumption of travel under the Cambodia-Singapore vaccinated travel lane.

Dr Balakrishnan also expressed Singapore's support for Cambodia's chairmanship of Asean and Mr Prak Sokhonn's role as the special envoy of the Asean chair on Myanmar.

"Cambodia's Asean chairmanship theme of 'Asean Act: Addressing challenges together' is especially apt - Asean will overcome challenges together," Dr Balakrishnan said in his Facebook post.

"We both urged the Myanmar military authorities to swiftly and fully implement the Five-Point Consensus, including by facilitating the special envoy's visit to Myanmar to meet with all parties concerned," he added.

Dr Balakrishnan noted with regret that there has been no significant progress in implementing the consensus. Under the Asean Five-Point Consensus hammered out in April last year, the special envoy is tasked with meeting and helping to facilitate constructive dialogue among all parties concerned in Myanmar's political crisis.

The blueprint also calls for violence to cease, and for humanitarian aid to be facilitated.

Asean member states resolved last October to limit Myanmar to a "non-political representative" at its meetings, pending significant progress on its blueprint.

Yesterday, Cambodia said Myanmar had confirmed its absence from this week's meeting.

Dr Balakrishnan has invited Mr Prak Sokhonn to make an official visit to Singapore. "Fondly recall hosting DPM Sokhonn during his last visit to Singapore in 2018," he said in the Facebook post.

He will call on Prime Minister Hun Sen today, and also meet the chairman of the National Assembly Commission on Education, Youth, Sports, Religion, Culture and Tourism Hun Many.