Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen (right) is escorted Prime Minister Shinzo Abe before their meeting at Abe's official residence in Tokyo on Sunday. Photo: The Japan Times

(VOVworld)- Japan and Cambodia have agreed to advance their defense cooperation and upgrade their bilateral relations to a strategic partnership. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Cambodian counterpart Hun Sen witnessed the signing on Sunday in Tokyo by their defense ministers of a memorandum of understanding concerning the cooperation and exchanges. Prime Minister Abe pledged 133 million USD in new loans for three infrastructure projects in Cambodia. The two Prime Ministers agreed to start negotiating a bilateral aviation agreement, with a view to launching direct flights between the two countries.