Phnom penh: Senior Minister H.E. Dr. Ly Thuch has expressed Cambodia's desire for France to resume its support for humanitarian mine clearance activities in the Kingdom. H.E. Dr. Ly Thuch, who also serves as First Vice President of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA), made the request while receiving H.E. Olivier Richard, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the French Republic to the Kingdom of Cambodia, at the CMAA headquarters in Phnom Penh.
According to Agence Kampuchea Presse, on behalf of the Royal Government of Cambodia, H.E. Dr. Ly Thuch highly valued the historical relations, close friendship, and long-standing cooperation between the two countries and peoples, and thanked France for its contributions to Cambodia's peace process and development. He recalled France's support to Cambodia's mine action sector since the UNTAC era and expressed gratitude for France's assistance during Cambodia's presidency and hosting of the 11th Meeting of the States Parties to the Ottawa Convention in 2011, as well as the 5th Review Meeting of the Convention in 2024.
For his part, H.E. Olivier Richard praised the Royal Government's achievements in mine clearance over the past three decades and pledged to report Cambodia's request for renewed French engagement in humanitarian mine action to his government for consideration. Regarding the Cambodia-Thailand border issue, H.E. Dr. Ly Thuch reaffirmed Cambodia's firm stance to resolve the matter peacefully and in accordance with international law, with the goal of transforming the border region into an area of peace. Ambassador Richard expressed France's support for peaceful dialogue between Cambodia and Thailand.