Prime Minister Hun Sen has brought forward his US trip, where he is scheduled to lead a delegation to the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York and later visit Cuba, presumably to pay his last respects to the late Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

According to an official letter, signed by Kranh Tony, secretary of state at the Council of Ministers on September 7, Hun Sen would be attending the 77th UNGA from September 21 to 23 instead of September 19 to 25.

Following that, he will visit Cuba between September 23 and 25, and not September 25 to 29 as initially planned, and travel to Japan for Abe’s funeral where he will be from September 26 to 28.

In a two-day visit to Cambodia on August 21, president of the UNGA 76th session Abdulla Shahid expressed his admiration for Cambodia’s contribution to multilateralism and the peacekeeping mission under the UN umbrella.

The premier’s planned visit to Havana is pursuant to Cuba’s First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Gerardo Penalver Portal to Cambodia early this month.

Portal and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Prak Sokhonn discussed future high-level visit exchange between the two countries.

Both sides hoped that the historic exchange would pave the way for stronger bilateral relations, lasting friendship and good cooperation, especially in areas of health, education and sports.