The signing ceremony, held near the site, was also attended by Cambodia's deputy prime minister in charge of heritage protection and tourism investment Sok An and the French Ambassador to Cambodia.
The letter of intent was signed following the annual plenary meeting of the International Committee for the Safeguard and Development of the Historic Site of Angkor, which approved the project. Hungary and the Angkor Foundation are founding members of the organisation, which is co-chaired by France and Japan, and led by UNESCO. József Laszlovszky, an archaeologist from the Central European University, oversees the project.
The letter of intent was signed on behalf of the Angkor Foundation by board chairman and former Hungarian ambassador to Cambodia János Jelen. The foundation was set up in 1992 on the initiative of King Sihanouk and Hungary's president at the time Árpád Göncz. The project is also supported by the Professional Service for Cultural Heritage Protection.
The three-year programme will involve a dozen Hungarian archaeologists as well as experts in environmental protection and city development who will excavate the 81-square-kilometre area, which lies in the middle of the jungle. The team will also prepare a proposal to the Cambodian government on using the site as a tourist attraction.
The Hungarian Indochina Investment and Development Society, established by István Zelnik in 2006, has already agreed with the Cambodian government to set up a fruit distillery and a real estate development company. HUNINCOR is in advanced talks on setting up a fruit plantation.
Source: múlt-kor
