In the morning of 15 March 2023, H.E. Dr. CHEM Widhya, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, received a farewell call by H.E. Ms. Marinela Milcheva Petkova, Ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary of the Republic of Bulgaria to the Kingdom of Cambodia with Residence in Hanoi,  upon the completion of her diplomatic mission to Cambodia. 

During the meeting, H.E. Dr. CHEM Widhya highlighted the achievements of H.E. Ms. Marinela Petkova during her tenure in spite of the difficult time during Covid-19 pandemic. Both sides took note of the development in the bilateral and multilateral cooperation between Cambodia and Bulgaria. Both sides also agreed that the fruitful official visit of Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo HUN Sen, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodi, to Bulgria in 2019, during which a few MOUs on the cooperation in fields of Economy, Education, Culture, Science were signed; and the re-opening of Cambodian Embassy in Sofia are milestones in boosting the friendly relationship and expanding cooperation between the two countries. 

H.E. Ambassador congratulated Cambodia for the success of 2022 ASEAN Chairmanship and recognised the vital role of Cambodia to elevate the relationship between ASEAN and its key partners, as well as in the process of including Timor-Leste as a member of ASEAN.  She praised the independent foreign policy of Cambodia based on the rule of law.  Both sides exchanged views on regional and international issues.