Cambodia PM Hun Sen calls Bangladesh’s Sheikh Hasina sister

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has called his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina sister, and she has reciprocated the gesture by calling him brother.

The two leaders held a bilateral and a private meeting in Phnom Penh to discuss ways to take the ties to a new high, they said in a joint statement on Monday. 

Foreign Secretary Md Shahidul Haque and Prime Minister’s Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim briefed the media after the meetings at the Cambodian Prime Minister’s Office Peace Palace on the second day of the three-day state visit to the South-East Asian country.

Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina (L) is welcomed by her Cambodian counterpart Hun Sen at the Prime Minister's office in Phnom Penh, Cambodia December 4, 2017. Reuters

“The Cambodian prime minister has called our prime minister sister. He said, ‘You are not only Bangladesh’s prime minister, but you are also my sister.’ Our prime minister then called him brother,” Shahidul told reporters.

“You can get an essence of the ties between the two countries from this,” he added.

Former Khmer Rouge commander Hun Sen, who has been prime minister of Cambodia since 1985, is one of the longest-serving leaders in the world.

Hasina has served as prime minister for 14 years, including around nine straight years.