The commander of the US Seventh Fleet met with senior Cambodian military officials Wednesday in talks aimed at improving cooperation between the navies of the two countries.
Vice Admiral Scott Van Buskirk is visiting from Aug. 3 to Aug. 4.
Chhum Socheath, a spokesman for the Ministry of Defense, said Wednesday that Van Buskirk met with Cambodia’s Vice Admiral Soa Sarin, deputy navy commander, and Lt. Gen. Noun Samnang, deputy general director for political and foreign affairs of the ministry, to discuss bilateral and regional issues.
The two sides discussed Cambodia’s participation in readiness training later this year, along with training in “maritime security, search and rescue, humanitarian and disaster relief, and seamanship and navigation,” a US statement said.
“I think that this visit aims to upgrade the cooperation between the two countries in maintaining security in the region and world,” Chhum Socheath said.
During his visit, Van Buskirk is also scheduled to visit the naval base at Ream, in Preah Sihanouk province and to observe Cambodian naval training exercises. The stopover comes after the first joint naval exercise between the two countries earlier this year.