Hun Sen to skip G20, Apec summits after contracting Covid
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen tested positive for Covid-19 in Bali, where he is slated to attend the two-day G20 summit.
In a social media post on Tuesday, the premier said: “Before leaving Cambodia, I always take Covid-19 tests. And before departing this time, I took a rapid test and the result was negative.
“I am unaware as to when I got infected. But when I arrived in Indonesia, I was tested and this morning it was confirmed to be Covid-19 positive. I have to accept this, though I don’t have any uncommon symptoms,” he said.
Hun Sen was scheduled to have a dinner meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday evening on the sidelines of the G20 summit, but he said the meeting did not take place because he was late.
Hun Sen said that to ensure other leaders’ safety, he and his delegation will return to Cambodia.
Hun Sen was expected to attend the Apec Leaders’ Informal Dialogue in Bangkok on Friday but has cancelled that too. He said he will continue working in Phnom Penh with all planned in-person meetings cancelled.
“It’s too bad that PM Hun Sen will not be attending the Apec meeting in Bangkok this week. We expect Cambodia to send its delegates to the leader-level meetings on Friday and Saturday,” Foreign Ministry’s deputy spokesman Natapanu Nopakun said on Tuesday.
- With input from The Phnom Penh Post.
