The event will be co-chaired by the Ministers of National Defense of both nations.
On the morning of November 5 in Hanoi, the Ministry of National Defense held a press conference on the second Vietnam–Cambodia Border Defense Friendship Exchange Program.
Speaking at the press conference, Lieutenant General Nguyen Van Duc, Director of the Department of Propaganda and Training under the General Department of Political Affairs of the Vietnam People’s Army, said that in 2022, Vietnam and Cambodia successfully organized the first Vietnam–Cambodia Border Defense Friendship Exchange Program, and the two countries will continue with the second edition this year.
The program aims to further strengthen the strong ties between the two nations, enhance mutual political trust, and open up opportunities for comprehensive cooperation. The success of the event will help border management and protection forces, local authorities, and residents on both sides of the border areas work together more effectively and practically, contributing to building a Vietnam–Cambodia border of peace, friendship, stability, cooperation, and development.
Key activities of the program in Vietnam will take place on November 13, including a welcoming and farewell ceremony for the Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense; a friendship tree-planting event; a joint military medical exercise between the two armies; the inauguration ceremony of the semi-boarding area of Ben Cau Primary School in Thuan Lam Hamlet, Ben Cau Commune, Tay Ninh Province; a signing ceremony between sister residential areas along the border in Long Cuong Hamlet, Long Thuan Commune, Tay Ninh Province, and O Ta Mo Hamlet, Mo No Rum Commune, Svay Teap District, Svay Rieng Province, Cambodia; bilateral talks and the signing of cooperation documents between the two Ministries of National Defense; and a visit to the Traditional House of Division 5 under Military Region 7.
The program on November 14 in Cambodia will include a welcoming and farewell ceremony for Vietnam’s Minister of National Defense; a flag-saluting and border marker-painting ceremony at Marker No. 171; a friendship tree-planting event; a joint patrol by border management and protection forces of both countries; a groundbreaking ceremony for the friendship project of the Sang Sovan Primary School in Svay Teap District, Svay Rieng Province; and a visit to the headquarters of the Svay Rieng Provincial Gendarmerie Command.
In addition, a series of activities will take place ahead of the main exchange program, including joint medical examinations, treatment, and free medicine distribution for residents along both sides of the border; the donation of breeding cattle to local communities; joint military medical drills; a scholarship program for students from both countries; and an exchange program for young military officers from Vietnam and Cambodia, among others.
At the press conference, Colonel Le Van Dong of the Military Medical Department said that on the morning of November 5, a medical examination and treatment program for Cambodian residents in Svay Rieng Province had already taken place. The activity was conducted by Military Hospital 175, which is expected to provide medical check-ups for around 1,000 people. The hospital's working delegation will move to Tay Ninh Province after completing their mission in Cambodia to provide medical services to approximately 800 Vietnamese residents.
