Malaysia Pledges Deeper Defence Cooperation with Cambodia

Malaysian Defence Minister H.E. Dato’ Seri Mohamed Khaled bin Nordin has reaffirmed Malaysia’s commitment to further strengthening and expanding defence cooperation with Cambodia, particularly through deeper collaboration between the two countries’ defence ministries. The commitment was made during his courtesy call and working discussion with Samdech Moha Borvor Thipadei Hun Manet, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia, at the Peace Palace on Friday. During the meeting, the Malaysian Defence Minister expressed his high appreciation for the strong and positive relations and cooperation between Cambodia and Malaysia, describing Cambodia as a close and trusted friend. He said his visit would contribute significantly to further strengthening bilateral ties and translating commitments into concrete actions aimed at deepening Malaysia-Cambodia cooperation, especially in the defence sector. H.E. Dato’ Seri Mohamed Khaled also briefed the Cambodian Prime Minister on the fruitful outcomes of the bilateral meeting between the defence ministers of the two countries. He reaffirmed Malaysia’s commitment to continuing to provide training programmes for Cambodia and exploring further cooperation in areas including peacekeeping operations, responses to non-traditional security challenges, maritime security, and the development of artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities in the defence sector. In response, Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet welcomed the progress in Cambodia-Malaysia relations and cooperation, while highly valuing the achievements made through bilateral collaboration, particularly in the defence field. The Prime Minister underlined that the Royal Government of Cambodia would continue to support the strengthening and expansion of cooperation between the defence ministries of the two countries. On the occasion, Samdech Thipadei expressed his profound appreciation to the Malaysian Government for its active role in facilitating the ceasefire between Cambodia and Thailand, as well as for leading and continuing to make important contributions to the ASEAN Observer Team (AOT) mechanism in Cambodia. He encouraged the defence ministries of both countries to continue promoting closer and deeper cooperation in the future. The two sides also exchanged views on a number of regional and international issues of mutual interest. Before concluding the meeting, Samdech Thipadei briefed the Malaysian Defence Minister on the latest developments regarding the Cambodia-Thailand border situation, stressing Cambodia’s commitment to continuing to resolve border-related issues through peaceful means based on international law and in accordance with existing conventions, treaties and agreements between the two countries.