VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Indonesian Ambassador to Cambodia, Dr. Santo Darmosumarto and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance of Cambodia, Aun Pormoniroth held a meeting at the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Phnom Penh on Tuesday last week (26/12). Quoted from a release from the Indonesian Embassy in Phnom Penh, Pormoniroth expressed his gratitude for Indonesia's big role and leadership in efforts to resolve the conflict in Cambodia as well as Indonesia's leadership in ASEAN in 2023.

In response to this, Ambassador Santo conveyed that Indonesia's success as Chair of ASEAN 2023 was built on the success of Cambodia's chairmanship of ASEAN 2022, which took place after the Covid-19 pandemic. According to him, there are still lots of cooperations that must be developed and strengthened to be able to take advantage of the close historical ties of both countries. He has also explained that transforming historical ties into trade, investment, tourism and socio-cultural cooperation of both countries are things which must be a priority. Ambassador Santo highlighted the importance of balancing the trade balance of the countries, to strengthen economic cooperation. According to him, Indonesian business people do not know much about Cambodia and its potential. To strengthen economic ties, the Ambassador further  considers it important to facilitate seamless payment systems and direct flights between various major tourism destinations in Cambodia and Indonesia for business people and travellers in both countries.

Moreover, the Ambassador also stated that apart from the economy, one of the focuses of developing cooperation during his term of office is relations among the people that are directed through providing human resource capacity and scholarships. Regarding this matter, according to him, Indonesia is always ready to help develop Cambodian human resources, including the young generation of Cambodian civil servants, so that they can have a deep understanding of Indonesia.

Besides, Ambassador Santo has stated that this young generation will in time have a role in exploring, deepening and strengthening cooperation of both countries. In this way, cooperation that already has strong foundations can develop into concrete cooperation and bring mutual benefits.