Chinese President Xi Jinping has held summit talks with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet to strengthen cooperation amid a storm of US tariffs.



Xi arrived in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh on Thursday before wrapping up his Southeast Asian tour.



Xi's visit to Cambodia comes as China and the United States exchange tit-for-tat tariffs. The administration of President Donald Trump has announced that it will impose 49-percent "reciprocal tariffs" on imports from Cambodia.



The Chinese and Cambodian leaders are believed to have reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening bilateral cooperation and standing against the US tariffs.
The two are also believed to have agreed on further cooperation in the security sector.
Earlier this month, new facilities were completed at Ream Naval Base in southwestern Cambodia. The facilities were built with China's assistance.



Xi published a signed article in Cambodian media outlets ahead of the meeting that day. In it, he noted that "China has been Cambodia's largest trading partner and largest source of investment."



He wrote that the two countries should "jointly safeguard the multilateral trading system" and "advance industrial and supply chain cooperation." He stressed that China and Cambodia must stand against hegemonism and power politics, jointly oppose protectionism and defend an international environment of openness and cooperation.