An official Chinese delegation arrived in Phnom Penh Monday for talks on bilateral relations and trade, an official said.

The delegation, led by Communist party member Zhang Gaoli, met with Prime Minister Hun Sen late Monday.

Ieng Sophalet, an adviser to Hun Sen, called the talks and exchange between “China and Cambodia, between party and party.”

Relations “should be strengthened between people and people, civil servants and civil servants, and could come closer and make friends with each other, especially in investment. We should push investment between the two countries deeply.

Hun Sen promised to continue cooperation between the two countries.

China’s president, prime minister, foreign affairs minister, wrote individual letters to the King Norodom Sihamoni, former king Norodom Sihanouk, Hun Sen and Foreign Affairs Minister Hor Namhong  congratulating each on Cambodia’s Independence Day earlier this month.

China has emerged as a willing donor to Cambodia in recent years, providing much aid with little of the attachments found with western donors. Earlier this month, a Chinese warship docked in Sihanoukville for an exchange between military officials.