Prime minister Hun Sen offers sympathies to France over Notre Dame de Paris that is destroyed by fire

Prime Minister Hun Sen has written a letter to French Prime Minister Edouard Phillippe to offer his sympathy to the French government and people over the destruction of the 850 year-old ironic cathedral, Notre Dame de Paris, destroyed by an extensive fire on Monday, April 15.

In the letter obtained by Khmer Times today, the Prime Minister stated that, “The terrible image of flames on the church roof shatters us deeply. Notre Dame Cathedral represents Paris, and what we have seen causes us so much sorrow. We feel the same sadness as all our friends in France.

"This incident touched us. The Angkor Wat in our country, like the Notre Dame de Paris, is a cultural heritage from a long time. We must admit that there is nothing to replace the past."

It is reported that the famous Notre Dame was destroyed by fire on Monday. As a huge loss of cultural heritage, the destruction of the structure has brought tremendous impact to France and the people of the world.

According to the BBC, the cause of the fire is still unknown. The official believes that this is an accident and is investigating whether the incident has a certain connection with the building renovation project.

French President Emmanuel Macron vowed to restore the destructive structure within five years and build a more beautiful Notre Dame.

The news was translated from the Cambodia Daily.