China Cambodia Photo: VCG

After successfully concluding his state visit to Malaysia, Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Phnom Penh on Thursday morning for a state visit to Cambodia at the invitation of Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni. In a signed article published in Cambodian media, President Xi extended his warmest New Year greetings to the brothers and sisters in Cambodia. He outlined five objectives for further advancing China-Cambodia ties, and wrote that "China will work with Cambodia to safeguard peace, pursue development and achieve shared prosperity, to make solid progress in building the China-Cambodia community with a shared future in the new era, and to bring greater stability and certainty to this turbulent world." Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia are all important neighbors of China. Xi's visits not only witnessed the mutual trust, mutual benefit, unity and cooperation between China and ASEAN member states, but also pressed the "accelerator" button for building a common beautiful home in China's neighborhood.

China and Cambodia have a 2,000-year history of friendly exchanges. The "iron friendship" between China and Cambodia, founded and carefully nurtured by the older generation of leaders from both countries, is a remarkable story in the history of modern Asian diplomacy. The two countries are geographically close and culturally connected. The exchanges between the people are as cordial as visiting neighbors. Helping each other has become a habit, reflecting the Chinese people's consistent way of being benevolent and friendly toward neighboring states. President Xi has visited Cambodia again after 9 years. The two sides have exchanged in-depth views on five major areas, including mutual political trust, mutually beneficial cooperation, security, people-to-people exchanges, and strategic coordination. This is not only a vivid continuation of the long-term friendly exchanges between the two countries, but also an inevitable choice to impart new significance to the China-Cambodia community with a shared future in the new era. 

Amity between the people holds the key to sound state-to-state relations. The two countries have taken the lead in building a bilateral community with a shared future, as well as Belt and Road cooperation. China has aided in the construction of infrastructure projects, such as Cambodia's first expressway, largest power plant and largest stadium. Chinese enterprises have found investment opportunities in Cambodia and have also helped local people improve their living standards.

Riding the momentum of the free trade agreement, high-quality Cambodian agricultural and aquatic products such as rice, bananas, mangoes, longan, coconuts, and pangasius fish have entered the Chinese market, which not only enriches Chinese consumers' food baskets but also boosts incomes for Cambodian citizens. Today, more and more Chinese tourists are visiting Cambodia to experience the rich Angkor civilization, while a growing number of Cambodians are learning Chinese, drawn to the ancient Chinese civilization and the appeal of Chinese modernization. The two countries support each other in maintaining national stability and promoting development and prosperity, and they stand united in defending international fairness and justice. Together, they are setting a model for a new type of international relations and contributing to building a community with a shared future for mankind.

The brotherly and neighborly relationship between China and Cambodia is not only a microcosm of China's efforts in building a community with a shared future with neighboring countries, but also a vivid chapter in the vision of building a peaceful, safe and secure, prosperous, beautiful and amicable home. As emerging economies that have gone through similar development stages, China's modernization strategy closely aligns with the development aspirations of its neighbors. The Chinese Dream of peaceful development and win-win cooperation resonates deeply with the ASEAN people's longing for a better life. The friendship between China and its neighbors is rooted in their respective development needs and national revitalization goals. It reflects the shared interests of the Asian peoples and is in line with the prevailing trend of solidarity, self-reliance, and common development among countries of the Global South.

President Xi's Southeast Asian tour has attracted global attention, reflecting the Chinese government's high regard for its work with neighboring countries. From a political perspective, whether it is "deepening the building of the China-Vietnam community with a shared future that carries strategic significance," "building a high-level strategic China-Malaysia community with a shared future," or "an all-weather China-Cambodia community with shared future in new era," mutual trust between China and the three countries has strengthened. From an economic dimension, the Belt and Road Initiative is deeply integrated with Vietnam's "Two Corridors and One Circle" and Cambodia's "Pentagonal Strategy," while the China-Malaysia "Two Countries, Twin Parks" cooperation has been upgraded, solidifying the foundation for mutual benefit and win-win outcomes. From a cultural perspective, inviting Vietnamese youth to China for "Red Study Tours," promoting dialogue between Confucian and Islamic civilizations, and the vibrant "Cambodia-China People-to-People Exchange Year" have all contributed to building broader bridges of understanding between the peoples. These achievements clearly demonstrate that promoting peace through cooperation and stability through development are accelerating the construction of a community with a shared future with neighboring countries. 

Forging friendship and partnership with neighbors has always been the principle of China's neighborhood diplomacy. There is no zero-sum game of "you win, I lose," only the partnership of moving forward together; there is no prejudice regarding the superiority of civilizations, only the sincerity of mutual learning and appreciation; there is no barrier of developmental gaps, only the prosperity of common wealth. This is the expectation of the Asian people for a shared home and the common goal that China and its neighboring countries strive for together. As a community with a shared future with neighboring countries deepens and solidifies through "happiness lists" that benefit the people of the region, the era of mutual advancement and achievement between China and ASEAN countries will become even broader.