EU and Cambodian officials met in Phnom Penh on 26 March for the 13th EU-Cambodia Joint Committee, which followed two days of subgroup talks on cooperation, trade and investment, and governance, with human rights emerging as a major issue.
The meeting was co-chaired by Kan Pharidh, Secretary of State at Cambodia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, and Paola Pampaloni, Deputy Managing Director for Asia and the Pacific at the European External Action Service (EEAS), EEAS reported on Thursday.
Officials discussed links between Cambodia’s “Pentagonal Strategy - Phase I” and the EU’s Global Gateway Strategy, including investment in infrastructure projects, particularly in energy and clean water.
Two “Global Gateway Flagships” were cited as being implemented: the Bakheng Water Treatment Plant and the Partnership in Education for Green and Digital Jobs.
Talks also covered Cambodia’s transition from Least Developed Country (LDC) status, including export diversification and value-chain development, and cooperation on public finance management reforms, trade and private sector development.
Trade, rights and regional issues
Trade discussions included Cambodia’s preferences under the EU’s Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP) and its future transition from the Everything But Arms (EBA) arrangement, which allows duty-free, quota-free access to the EU market for most goods from least developed countries, EEAS reported.
EU-Cambodia bilateral trade in goods reached €7.2 billion in 2025.
The two sides held what was described as a “candid and constructive” dialogue on human rights, including freedom of expression and media freedom, labour rights, rule of law and justice reforms, gender equality, minority rights, and combating human trafficking and online scamming.
They acknowledged “significant divergences” in their assessments of Cambodia’s human rights situation and agreed to continue the dialogue.
Regional and global issues discussed included Ukraine, the Middle East and Myanmar, as well as the Cambodia-Thailand border conflict and EU-ASEAN cooperation.
The meeting ended with agreement that the 14th Cambodia-EU Joint Committee and its three subgroup meetings would be held in Brussels.
