During the official visit and participation in the Summit of the three countries – Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam, Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo Hun Sen, Prime Minister of Cambodia made some speeches as followed:
1) Statement at the Opening of the fifth Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam (CLV) Summit
2) Remarks at the “fifth CLV Summit”
3) Toast at the Gala Dinner Party of the fifth CLV Summit
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Statement at the Opening of the 5th Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam (CLV) Summit
Vientiane, 26th November 2008
Excellency Prime Minister Nguen Tan Dzung,
Excellency Prime Minister Bouasone Bouphavanh,
Distinguish Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Today, I am very pleased to meet you once again at this beautiful capital of Vientiane after the recent ACMECS and CLMV Summits in Hanoi. At the outset, I would like to thank the Government of Lao People’s Democratic Republic for the excellent arrangement for this 5th CLV Summit and the warm hospitality extended to me and my delegation.
This summit is of great significance to our respective country to reaffirm our determination to deepen our long traditional friendship, good neighborliness and mutual benefits, and at the same time to review the progress of the implementation of the Master Plan for the Development Triangle of Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam which was unanimously adopted in 2004 in Vientiane; and also to set future direction, create opportunities and indispensable and sufficient conditions for stability and sustainable development in the shared spirit of solidarity, friendship, and mutual interests.
The summit is very timely as ASEAN is accelerating the process of ASEAN Community building by 2015. Conceptually, the CLV cooperation has been incepted to strengthen and accelerate the integration of the three countries with other ASEAN members in order to reduce development gap within the Mekong Sub-region. Furthermore, the CLV cooperation is a synergy for other sub-regional frameworks, which were created to facilitate integration and reduce development gap, such as the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS), the ASEAN Mekong Basin Development Cooperation (AMBDC), the Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI), Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation (ACMECS), CLMV Cooperation, the Mekong River Commission (MRC), the East-West Corridor, the Mekong-Ganga Cooperation (MGC) etc.
I am very pleased to note that over the last four years we have achieved steadfast and sustained progress in implementing the Master Plan for our Development Triangle. Particularly, we have accomplished significant progress in the bilateral cooperation between Cambodia-Laos and Cambodia-Vietnam in the areas of trade facilitation and investment, agriculture, energy and electricity, road transport network linkages along the borders, tourism and human resource development. Indeed our further efforts to elevate our cooperation in trade facilitation, investments in the construction of more border markets and special economic zone at the border, opening more international border check-points, connecting road transport from Cambodia to Laos and from Cambodia to Vietnam, as well as promoting cooperation in human resource development and tourism, especially eco-tourism will further boost economic growth and social progress. In this regard, I would like to warmly welcome to the signing of the MOU between CLV toward the Formulation of Special Preferential Policies for the Development Triangle Area by our Trade Ministers. I believe that the implementation of this policy will further enhance trade activities between Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos, and make more contribution to narrow the development gap and reduce poverty incidence in the region.
While we have made real progress in our cooperation in the last four years, however financing remains a fundamental challenge for all of us in order to attain the goals set in the Master Plan. Thus, we should thoroughly discuss the issue at this summit in order to come up with creative and effective mechanism for financing projects. The pledge of USD 20 million from Japan to finance the triangle development of our countries provides a good start for our cooperation to yield concrete and fruitful outcome.
Finally, I believe that with the rich resource endowment and whole-hearted cooperation among our respective government to create an enabling environment for the economic activities, especially the establishment of proper infrastructure in the triangle would provide a crucial geographic advantage and attractions that investors can use to realize their strategic plan in contributing to the promotion of grow growth, employment, and income raising that will reduce the poverty and transform the development triangle into an epicenter of growth and prosperity.
EndItem.
Remarks at the “5th CLV Summit”
Vientiane, 26th November 2008
Your Excellency BOUASONE BOUPHAVANH,
Your Excellency NGUYEN TAN DZUNG,
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen!
It is extremely a great pleasure for me to join the “5th CLV Summit”. This represents another historical event for the three countries in expanding our long-lasting cooperation. This is also a great opportunity for the three countries to re-assess the initiatives that were agreed upon.
Having heard of the remarkable progress in our cooperation between the three countries for the last 4 years, I would like to take this opportunity to thank and congratulate senior officials of the Committee and working groups of the three countries,Cambodia, Lao PDR and Vietnam for their joint hard work for the common interests of our peoples.
The three countries have resolutely walked forward together toward country development objectives and poverty reduction in order to become advanced countries in the near future. The three countries have committed to transforming the Triangle Area into an economic zone through promoting domestic and foreign direct investment, using government budget for public investment projects, and also requesting foreign development cooperation financing for the construction of infrastructure. The three countries cooperation at tri-lateral and bi-lateral levels and with other development partners in investment, infrastructure, tourism, culture and people to people cooperation have reached a new height and brought enormous benefits for the peoples of the three countries.
At the tri-lateral cooperation level, I would like to express my warm welcome to the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding toward the formulation of preferential policies for the Development Triangle Area by Ministers of the three countries yesterday. The formulation of such preferential policies is another big progress in our cooperation. I would like to encourage our Joint Committee to make utmost efforts in order to effectively implement this MOU. There is a need to regularly review the policies in order to smoothen its implementation in accordance with the ability and real situation of each country, in accordance with policy development rules and regulations including international agreements which we are the signatory countries. The Joint Committees should regularly report progress to the Leaders.
I hope that the implementation of above mentioned policies will increase the trade volume between Cambodia and Vietnamto a total of US $1700 millions in 2009 as Cambodia and Vietnam have already signed the agreement on cross-border goods since the 4th November 2008.
May I recall that on the 26th November 2004 in this beautiful Vientiane capital, the Prime Ministers of Cambodia, Lao PDR and Vietnam unanimously adopted the Master Plan on the Development Triangle of CLV, aimed at improving economic and social situation and reducing poverty of the peoples living in the Triangle Area which is our remote and poor areas. Due to the fact that the economic and political situation, rules and regulations in the countries, the region and the world have undergone dramatic changes for the last 4 years, the Royal Government of Cambodia agreed in principle with the necessity to revise the Master Plan on the Development Triangle of our countries and fully agreed with the 14 recommendations provided by the monitoring working group of the three countries responsible for the Master Plan’s review.
To make further improvement to the Master Plan, I would like to share my opinion on a number of aspects as follows:
– The revision of the Master Plan should get involvement from parties concerned such as private sector, representatives of countries provided development cooperation financing in order to make the new revised Master Plan comprehensively incorporated views and ideas for the Development Triangle.
– We should request Japan for financial support and deployment of experts to work with technical officials of our countries in order to ensure that the revision can be concluded by the end of 2009.
– We should include environmental impact assessment in major long-term projects to ensure the sustainable Development Triangle, especially the electricity power and mine exploration projects. By doing so, when investors come we can immediately approve the projects.
We have successfully hosted three times Conference on Trade, Investment and Tourism Promotion, namely the first conference was in Cambodia, the second was in Vietnam and third one was in Laos. To enable this conference to attain further achievement in attracting investment and promoting government -private sector dialogue, I would like to provide some recommendations as follows:
-First. Inform the private sector about the conference at least 3 months in advance to allow them enough time to prepare ideas for discussion.
-Second. Invite NGOs and development partners’ representatives to participate in the conference.
-Third. Ensure participation of key ministers, thus can address various emerging issues and can also convey the issues to their respective Prime Ministers for recommendations and decisions. Those Ministers could be the Minister of Commerce, of Industry, or of Investment or Transport.
-Fourth. Request the private sector to submit their comments to the focal point of each country in order to provide positive solutions to the problems.
-Fifth. Promote tourism sector, the three countries should formulate Plan of Action for connecting and facilitating the package tour for domestic tourists to visit sites in the Triangle Area.
-Sixth. Make effort to organize road show on the potential of the Triangle Area to the private sector of the CLV countriesand other countries such as China, Japan, Korea and other ASEAN countries to their investment.
With respect to cooperation with other development partners, especially Japan, I would like to join you to express my gratitude to Japan for providing its cooperation development financing every year for the Development Triangle Area. During the CLV + Japan Summit on 19th-20th November 2007 in Singapore, Japan has pledged to provide US $20 million for many projects which will make contribution to poverty reduction in the Triangle Area.
At the same time, in order to allow these cooperation development financing carried out quickly, I would advice our senior officials and the Joint Coordinating Committees to formulate projects through consultations with our embassy officials or JICA staff in order to make a list of joint projects for CLV countries to be ready presented to the Prime Minister of Japan at the CLV + Japan Summit or at the Mekong-Japan Foreign Ministers Meeting. The Budget for the Development Triangle cooperation should not go through the Japan-ASEAN Integration Fund as the process may delay implementation of our projects.
EndItem.
Toast at the Gala Dinner Party of the 5th CLV Summit
Vientiane, 26th November 2008
Excellency Bouasone Bouphavanh,
Excellency Nguyen Tan Dzung,
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen!
I am very honored and delighted in this auspicious and fraternity night to represent the delegates from Cambodia andVietnam to extend our deepest heart-felt appreciations to H.E. Prime Minister Bouasone Bouphavanh, who has prepared this solemn Gala Dinner to congratulate the success of the 5th CLV Summit. Taking this opportunity, I would like to congratulate and appreciate the Lao People’s Democratic Republic for the excellent hosting of this Summit. In particular, the wise chairmanship of H.E. Prime Minister Bouasone Bouphavanh has truly brought about fruitful results for our cooperation. In this regard, I would like to express my great satisfaction and appreciation once again for the outcome of this Summit, including the “Vientiane Declaration on Deepening of the Development Triangle” and the “Joint Statement on the CLV Development Triangle Area”.
Based on the achievements that we have accomplished today, I believe that our cooperation will be further enhanced and accelerated. Moreover, the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) toward the Formulation of Special Preferential Policies for the Development Triangle Area of CLV signed by Ministers of Trade of the 3 countries will strongly promote business activities between Cambodia-Lao PDR and Vietnam as well as contributing to poverty reduction and the reduction of development gap in the region.
The Royal Government as well as all the Cambodian people are fully satisfied and highly evaluate the cooperation in all sectors between the CLV countries. The fruitful cooperation between the CLV countries has become the key foundation to actively contribute to the socio-economic development and improvement in the living standard of Cambodian people, on the one hand, and the peoples of our three countries, on the other hand.
I believe that the Development Triangle will further deepen the good solidarity, mutual assistance for common interest, brotherliness-and- neighborhoods, and transform the Development Triangle of CLV countries to become a border of peace, security, long-lasting stability and a pole of high economic growth with sustainability, progress and prosperity.
Finally, I would like to propose a toast for our good traditional relations, friendship, long-lasting solidarity and prosperity of the people of our three countries, Cambodia-Laos PDR and Vietnam.
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