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India, Cambodia agree to enhance maritime cooperation, combat terrorism, sign four agreements

New Delhi: In keeping with New Delhi's Act East Policy which has Southeast Asia as its central focus, India and Cambodia agreed to enhance maritime cooperation while deciding to combat the menace of terrorism together following delegation-level between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Cambodian counterpart, Hun Sen here on Saturday.
A joint statement issued following the talks said both sides expressed interest "in enhancing cooperation in the maritime domain, including sustainable marine development and protection and preservation of marine and coastal environment, anti-piracy cooperation, security of sea lanes of communication to maintain peace and ensure safety and security of navigation in the Indo-Pacific region".
"They also agreed that peace and maritime security is important for both countries," it stated. "To that end, they support complete freedom of navigation and overflight and pacific resolution of maritime issues based on international law, notably the 1982 Unclos (UN Convention for the Law of the Sea)."
This assumes significance given China's aggressive stance in the South China Sea and India's keenness to play a more influential role in the Indo-Pacific region.
According to the statement, both Modi and Hun Sen affirmed that those responsible for committing, abetting, organising and supporting terrorist acts must be held accountable and be punished.
"The two leaders further agreed that terrorism cannot be used as an instrument of state policy for furthering narrow political objectives," it stated in what is a veiled reference to Pakistan.

India and Cambodia also agreed to sign four agreements, including on a credit line for a water resource development project and on prevention of human trafficking, following delegation-level talks headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Cambodian counterpart Hun Sen here.
A credit line agreement of $36.92 million was signed between the EXIM Bank of India and the Cambodian government to finance the Stung Sva Hab Water Resource Development Project, according to the External Affairs Ministry.
A cultural exchange programme with Cambodia for the years 2018-2022 was signed which seeks to promote cultural exchange and strengthen the friendly relations between India and Cambodia.
An agreement on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters was signed which is aimed at improving the effectiveness of both countries in the prevention, investigation and prosecution of crimes through cooperation and legal assistance in criminal matters.
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was also signed on cooperation for prevention of human trafficking. It seeks to increase the bilateral cooperation on the issues of prevention, rescue and repatriation related to human trafficking.
Hun Sen, who arrived here on Wednesday to participate in the Commemorative Summit to mark 25 years of the India-Association of Southeast Nations (Asean) Dialogue Partnership and was among the all 10 heads of government or state of Asean nations to be guests of honour in this year's Republic Day celebrations, extended his trip to that of a bilateral state visit on Saturday.
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