The inaugural Army to Army Staff Talks (AAST) between the Indian Army and the Royal Cambodian Army (RCA) took place in Siem Reap province last Monday to Thursday.

The talks were held as envisaged in the ‘Terms of Reference’ signed between the Indian Army and the Royal Cambodian Army during the maiden visit to India in February of then Lieutenant General Hun Manet, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF) and Commander of the Royal Cambodian Army (RCA).

A two-member Indian Army delegation led by Major General Jagroop Singh along with the Defence Attaché of India accredited to Cambodia participated in the AAST.

The Indian Army delegation, during their four-day stay in Siem Reap held bilateral meetings with a delegation led by Lieutenant General Prak Sovanna, RCA Deputy Commander and Deputy Commander of the Military Region 4. The Indian delegation also visited the Peace Museum of Mine Action and was briefed on the ongoing demining operations in Cambodia during their visit to the fourth Military Region.

The two sides discussed enhancing training cooperation, conduct of tailor-made courses for the RCA personnel in India, deputation of experts from India, Indian assistance for demining operations by the RCA and capacity enhancement through military hardware. A roadmap for defence cooperation between both armies was also developed.

India’s defence linkages with Cambodia go back many years. India had provided a contingent of 2,250 personnel, including both military and non-military, for the conduct of the UNTAC sponsored elections in 1993.

Cambodians of all factions highly appreciated this contingent.

India was also among the initial contributors to UN de-mining operations in Cambodia. The Indian Army’s Corps of Engineers, as part of UNTAC, helped to develop a demining doctrine relevant to local conditions.

The defence cooperation has continued with training modules for the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces in demining and peacekeeping, defence courses under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC), goodwill visits by the Indian Navy and Indian Coast Guard ships along with the exchange of official delegations.

In recent years, India-Cambodia defence cooperation has gained new momentum with a number of high level interactions.

February’s visit by the now General Hun Manet to India and wide-ranging interactions with Indian leadership immensely strengthened defence cooperation between India and Cambodia.

Last year, the Defence Minister of India, Rajnath Singh, visited Siem Reap from November 21 to November 24, to attend the 9th ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM) and the maiden India-ASEAN Defence Ministers` Informal Meeting.

He held a meeting with Defence Minister General Tea Banh during the visit.

In 2018, then Indian Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman visited Cambodia along with a high-level delegation for bilateral interactions.

A bilateral Agreement on Defence Cooperation between India and Cambodia is already in place since 2007. The AAST has further institutionalised relations between both armies, and the next round of talks will be held in India.