HMS Tamar: Royal Navy warship makes emotional visit to Cambodia to 'showcase what Britain can offer'
It was the third time a Royal Navy warship has visited Cambodia in the past three years.
A Royal Navy warship has made a historic visit to Cambodia as part of efforts to strengthen ties between the two countries.
HMS Tamar spent a week in the port city of Sihanoukville, becoming the third Royal Navy warship to visit Cambodia in three years. The ship, which is based in Portsmouth when operating in UK waters, was welcomed by two Cambodian patrol craft, a guard of honour and flowers presented to commanding officer Commander Tom Lindsey.
During the visit, HMS Tamar's crew took part in joint training with the Royal Cambodian Navy, hosted local schoolchildren and government and military representatives on board, and carried out work for a children's charity.
The visit was aimed at building military and civilian cooperation between the UK and Cambodia. The Royal Cambodian Navy operates around 20 vessels and carries out work including coastal defence, search and rescue and tackling criminal activity at sea, including smuggling, people trafficking and piracy.
Commander Lindsey met Cambodian naval counterparts to discuss current and future cooperation between the two navies. He said: "My ship's company pulled out all the stops in welcoming key leaders from Cambodia's Royal Navy, government officials, local school children and families.
"In doing so we showcased what Britain can offer and allowed us to message the importance of prosperity in this region to the UK's own security and prosperity, enabled through maritime trade.
"The Royal Cambodian Navy and province of Sihanoukville were great hosts to me and my ship and I look forward to working with them again. It has been a privilege to bring Tamar to Cambodia for the first time – and for it to be the Royal Navy's first visit to Ream Naval Base makes it doubly special."
Cambodian sailors were invited aboard HMS Tamar to take part in medical and damage control training alongside their British counterparts. The exercises included trauma care at sea and training to prevent and respond to flooding on board ships.
The Portsmouth-based vessel also hosted an evening reception attended by government officials, military representatives, diplomats and business leaders.
Local primary school children were also welcomed aboard, where they tried on firefighting equipment and had the chance to spray water over the side of the ship. The youngsters then spent time playing board games and drawing with members of the crew.
A team from HMS Tamar visited M'lop Tapang, a charity supporting children and young people in Sihanoukville. Crew members spent time painting and improving the organisation's recreational facilities, seats and benches.
Leading Medical Assistant Stanex said: "A personal highlight for me was going to the children's charity centre to paint the recreation area because we got to help those who had nothing and see the joy in the kids' faces as we worked together to brighten up the area."