The two added their signatures to the document at the headquarters of the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Phnom Penh. After the official signing ceremony, ministry spokesperson Koy Koung told reporters the accord would enable airlines to fly non-stop and remove issues of transiting in locations such as Bangkok or Hanoi when travelling to and from Cambodia.
Although the agreement authorises direct flights, no airline has expressed an interest in flying between the two countries so far. The traffic is mostly one-way at present and far more Japanese tourists and business travellers come to Cambodia than travel in the opposite direction.
Spokesperson Koung stated that in 2014 approximately 200,000 Japanese nationals came to Cambodia. Air industry insiders say carriers will have to evaluate whether there is sufficient demand before establishing routes linking airports in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap with locations in Japan such as Tokyo’s Haneda or Narita airports.
Cambodia signs Japan air agreement
News in Asia
Cambodia and Japan have reached agreement on allowing airlines to fly directly between the two countries. Mao Havannall, the secretary of the Cambodian Civil Aviation Bureau, and Yuji Kumamaru, the country’s Japanese ambassador, signed the accord giving the scheme the green light at the end of last week.