Mixed Opinions on Vietnam’s Historical Role in Cambodia Spark Debate
Posted: Thu Jun 28, 2018 5:34 pm
By Sok Khemara
02 April 2018
WASHINGTON DC — A Cambodia researcher has said that Vietnam took a risk by supporting Prime Minister HE but saw him as an intelligent and capable leader who could support their narrative of liberation from the Khmer Rouge.
Hoang Vu, a Ph.D. candidate at Cornell University, told the audience at the annual Asian Studies Conference in Washington, DC last month that Vietnam had stayed in Cambodia for a decade “to justify that narrative, the original narrative, that they had come to liberate the country.
“Vietnam made the right decision to back a leader like him. I mean it’s not just only him, Heng Samrin, and other leaders. And knowing this risk because ultimately a credible and stable Cambodia at least does not oppose Vietnam, that is the minimum condition and we have achieved that,” Vu said. “The current Cambodian government is not indebted to VN in that way, is not controlled by VN, but it’s not actively opposing VN.”
Prak Sereivuth, executive president of the Khmers Kampuchea-Krom Federation, a pressure group, said the failure of the Soviet Union was the main driver behind Vietnam’s stunted ambitions in Cambodia.
full https://www.voacambodia.com/a/mixed-opi ... 28811.html