(VOVworld)- More than 500 young Vietnamese and Cambodians on Friday attended a seminar on promoting friendship for peace, cooperation and development. They highlighted the affection shown between the peoples of both countries and between young people in particular. Those attending agreed to help enhance the traditional friendship by stepping up exchanges. They hope to boost bilateral ties to a new height with the motto “good neighborliness, traditional friendship, and comprehensive, sustainable long standing cooperation.

The same day, a seminar to boost cooperative friendship between Vietnamese and Cambodia women opened in Ho Chi Minh city. The event was held by Vietnam Women’s Union. Present were its president Nguyen Thi Thanh Hoa, Men Sam On, Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and President of the Cambodian Women for Peace and Development Association, and 100 women’s union representatives from the two countries. Over the last 2 years Vietnamese and Cambodian women exchanged experience in poverty reduction and worked closely to prevent trafficking of women and children. Hoa told attendees: “Vietnam and Cambodia have witnessed a long-term cooperative friendship. Cooperation agreements until 2017 at both central and local levels are scheduled to be signed later this year. We will discuss ways to improve cooperation, which we believe will significantly contribute to consolidating Vietnam-Cambodia relations.”

This first joint conference between the two countries’ women drew lessons from the 2009-2011 period of cooperation, sought a direction for cooperation until 2017, and responded to Vietnam-Cambodia Friendship Year 2012.