PHNOM
PENH, Cambodia (AP) — China's top diplomat praised Cambodia for its support of
Beijing's positions on world affairs as he ended a visit to one of the
country's closest allies in Southeast Asia on Friday.
China is
at odds with several of Cambodia's fellow members of the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations who accuse Beijing of illegitimately extending
territorial claims in the South China Sea.
Chinese
Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Cambodian counterpart Prak Sokhon said at a news
conference that Cambodia backs Beijing's call for a solution that does not
involve interference from outside — an unstated reference to U.S. naval support
for some of the countries challenging Beijing's claims.
Wang Yi
said China's buildup of infrastructure on islands in the contested waters does
not affect the interests of other countries or interfere with the navigation of
ships traversing the area.
Cambodia,
one of the region's least-developed countries, enjoys large amounts of aid and
investment from China.
Wang Yi
reaffirmed that China will assist Cambodia in education, tourism, health care
and clearing land mines, which are a legacy of decades of war in Cambodia that
ended in the 1990s.
Wang Yi
also met with Cambodian King Nordom Sihamoni and Prime Minister Hun Sen during
his two-day visit.
China's
influence in Cambodia is considerable despite Beijing's strong backing of the
former communist Khmer Rouge government that was responsible for the deaths of
some 1.7 million people in the late 1970s.
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