China and Cambodia on Thursday launched a series of initiatives on cultural exchange and media cooperation at an event held in Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh to enhance the ties of the people of the two countries.
Co-hosted by China Media Group (CMG) and Cambodia's Ministry of Information, Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, Ministry of Tourism, and the Royal Academy of Cambodia, the event featured the launch of a series of initiatives spanning a diversity of topics from promoting shared prosperity to exchanging development experiences. It also coincided with President Xi Jinping's state visit to the Southeast Asian nation on Thursday.
Cambodian People's Party President and Senate President Samdech Techo Hun Sen sent a congratulatory letter to the event. He said the friendship between Cambodia and China has withstood the test of history and time, and China is Cambodia's most trusted friend.
Noting that cultural exchanges bond the two peoples, Hun Sen said he is glad to see Cambodia-China media cooperation has yielded fruitful results, expressing his belief that this Cambodia-China cultural exchange event will once again build a bridge for the two countries to deepen understanding, enhance mutual trust, and promote the steady development of their bilateral relations.
CMG President Shen Haixiong, Cambodian Minister of Information Neth Pheaktra, Cambodian Minister of Culture and Fine Arts Phoeurng Sackona, Cambodian Minister of Tourism Huot Hak and Sok Touch, president of the Royal Academy of Cambodia, together with other prominent figures from the political, economic, cultural, academic and media fields of Cambodia and China attended the the event.
During the event, the Chinese state broadcaster reached a series of practical cooperation agreements with multiple Cambodian government agencies and media outlets, and launched the China-Cambodia media partnership mechanism, the 10th "Open-air Cinema" film tour program, and other activities.
Under the media partnership mechanism, a joint interview event was unveiled. It will tell the development stories of China and Cambodia from multiple perspectives, share development experiences, and inject China-Cambodia strength into global development.
The "Open-air Cinema" project has screened more than 300 excellent Chinese film and television works, reaching over 100,000 Cambodian viewers while emerging as one of the major initiatives for cultural exchanges between China and Cambodia.
China, Cambodia launch cultural exchange initiatives to enhance ties
China, Cambodia launch cultural exchange initiatives to enhance ties
U.S. tariffs on Cambodia, which were set at 49 percent, have sparked concerns among the Southeast Asian country's key export industries such as garment manufacturing amid the ensuing economic uncertainties.
On April 2, U.S. President Donald Trump announced the 49 percent "reciprocal tariff" on goods imported from Cambodia, the highest among all countries. Days later, the U.S. reduced the so-called "reciprocal tariff" to 10 percent for 90 days, offering a window period to Cambodia for negotiations with it.
Cambodian businesspeople say the tariffs have the potential to wreak havoc on the country's manufacturing sector, which, according to data from the World Bank, makes up around a fifth of the country's GDP.
"For U.S. manufacturers, definitely, there will be a big impact. If manufacturers are focusing on U.S. products, they are now in the middle. They don't know what they should do at the moment because the tariff now from Cambodia to the U.S. is actually quite high," said Dr. Ben Li, a Hong Kong investor in Cambodia and Chairman of the Cambodia Chinese Commerce Association.
Nevertheless, Li sees the tariff hike as an opportunity to export more Cambodian goods to the European Union, where a majority of Cambodian exports enjoy duty-free status.
"I always say there will be a light (at the end of the tunnel.) Even now, the U.S. tariff is so high, it's going to be so high after 90 days, we don't know. But, there's still a big market to Japan or to the European Union. There's still a big opportunity there," he said.
The Cambodian investor also believes the development of major infrastructure projects will help support Cambodia's economy.
"Especially the new canal and then the new airport, and the railways which connect to China. I believe once the logistics and infrastructure are built up, it can help the whole country's economy. By reducing the transportation costs, it can also mitigate the tariff costs," he said.
Cambodia and the U.S. held their first tariff negotiations on April 16, with more expected to follow. Local experts said the stakes are high for the country's workers.
"If this negotiation fails, there will be a significant impact. It will include the garment and travel goods sector. These sectors consist of about 1,068 factories and 930,000 workers. The income generated from these sectors is about 3 billion dollars per year. So it would significantly impact Cambodia's economy, jobs and incomes," said Chey Tech, a socio-economic research and development consultant from Dynamic Alliance Consulting.
Despite the potential risks, Tech expressed his optimism about a positive outcome, citing Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manat's letter to Trump on April 4.
"The Prime Minister's letter confirmed that Cambodia would reduce the tariff rate for U.S. goods to 5 percent. Second, Cambodia is the least developed country. Third, Cambodia produces goods that the developed countries won't produce. We asked whether the U.S. would be able to produce these low-cost products. It cannot," said Tech.
In 2024, Cambodia exported goods of 9.9 billion dollars to the U.S., making it the country's largest market, accounting for 37 percent of Cambodia's total exports.
49-percent US tariffs sparks worry among Cambodia's key export industries
