The first-ever regional conference aimed at tackling timber smuggling from Cambodia will be held in Phnom Penh next month, organisers said on yesterday. The June 14-16 meeting will bring together government and forest industry officials and non-governmental groups from Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia. Officials from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank have also been invited. "The conference aims to improve cooperation between neighbouring countries to fight against the illegal transportation of logs from Cambodia," Cambodian forestry department director Ty Sokhun told Reuters.