PHNOM PENH, April 11 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Saturday issued a letter to wish the Cambodian people a happy Khmer New Year, which falls from April 14 to 16, according to the U.S. Embassy.

    "On the occasion of the Khmer New Year, I wish the Cambodian people peace, prosperity, and best wishes," she said in the letter made available to the press by the embassy.

    "I look forward to the year ahead as our two nations identify even greater opportunities to strengthen our bilateral ties, as well as to work together on mutual areas of interest," she said.

    "This past year has been marked by significant progress in our relations, including U.S. military humanitarian ship visits, new agreements to implement assistance programs in economic development and the rule of law, and Peace Corps volunteers in 11 provinces," she added.

    This has been the first time in recent years that a U.S. secretary of state wrote to greet the kingdom on the occasion of the Khmer New Year.

    In early March, U.S. Embassy spokesman John Johnson once told local media that Cambodia will host a multinational peacekeeping exercise in 2010 as part of a U.S. State Department program.

    "The Royal Government of Cambodia has agreed to host a multilateral peacekeeping training event in 2010 as part of the Global Peace Operations Initiative (GPOI), an annual Capstone training event attended by GPOI member nations and other regional and international partners," he said.

    The event will provide training such as "field tactical and command post operations," but the formal planning and preparation for the exercise will not begin until late this year, he added.