General Mao Sophan, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces and Commander of the Royal Cambodian Army (RCA), hosted a bilateral meeting this morning at RCA headquarters with General Tan Sri Dato’ Wira Muhammad Hafizuddeain Bin Jantan, Chief of the Malaysian Army.
During the meeting, both military leaders reaffirmed the longstanding friendship between Cambodia and Malaysia, which dates back to 1957. They expressed mutual satisfaction with the strong ties and continued collaboration between the two armies, highlighting the importance of enhancing military-to-military engagement as part of the broader bilateral relationship.
General Mao Sophan extended his sincere gratitude to the Malaysian Army for its continued support in providing training and capacity-building programmes to RCA personnel. He reiterated Cambodia’s commitment to strengthening cooperation and proposed new initiatives to further advance friendship, partnership, transparency, and mutual benefit.
General Tan Sri Dato’ Wira Muhammad Hafizuddeain Bin Jantan expressed his appreciation for the warm welcome and hospitality extended during his official visit. While acknowledging that a formal defence cooperation Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has yet to be signed, he noted the steady momentum of bilateral collaboration between the two armed forces. He confirmed Malaysia’s ongoing commitment to supporting RCA training initiatives in 2025 and 2026 and proposed knowledge exchange on Cambodia’s extensive experience in humanitarian mine clearance operations.
The two sides also explored opportunities to expand cooperation in several areas, including:
- Establishing regular Army-to-Army Staff Talks
- Conducting Subject Matter Expert Exchanges (SMEEs)
- Promoting junior officer exchange programmes
- Organising bilateral and multilateral joint exercises, with a focus on Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR)
The meeting concluded with a joint reaffirmation of their commitment to a strong, cooperative, and stable regional security partnership.
