On Friday, Prime Minister Hun Sen wrote on his Facebook page stating that during a meeting with the President of China Xi Jinping on Friday in Beijing, the premier urged Mr. Jinping to do somehow for the construction of a planned expressway connecting Capital Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville to start as soon as possible, because the expressway would be an important economic pole for Cambodia.
According to Prime Minster Hun Sen, the expressway would be also a part of the so-called "Belt and Road Initiative" conceived by President Jinping himself.
In response, Mr. Jinping said that China would be glad to help Cambodian people develop their country.
Last month, Mr. Sun Chanthol, Minister of Public Works and Transport, told reporters that the project to construct the expressway was 90 percent discussed with stakeholders. And he hoped its construction would begin next year.
Mr. Chanthol added that the expressway would have four lanes - two lanes in one direction, and two other lanes in the opposite direction. The expressway would help Cambodian people to travel faster and safer, because crossroad would be limited at maximum. On the other hand, for the safety, fences would be built on both sides of the expressway.
However, travelers must pay to use the expressway that would start from Choam Chao Roundpoint and go straight alongside or pass over the National Road 4 in some places. The expressway would be built by China Communications Construction Company that has planned to spend around $1,600 million for the construction. The expressway would be more than 200 kilometers long.
Proposed by Xi in 2013, the Belt and Road Initiative is an ambitious development program aiming to build trade and infrastructure networks connecting Asia with Europe and Africa via land and maritime routes.
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