RESEARCH BINDER #2
“SOUTH CHINA SEA: ADDRESSING THE TERRITORIAL DISPUTES
AND UPHOLDING INTERNATIONAL MARITIME LAW”
Country
General:
-​ Conventional long form: Kingdom of Cambodia
-​ Conventional short form: Cambodia
-​ Government type: Parliamentary Constitutional Monarchy
-​ Capital: Phnom Penh
-​ Independence: 9 November 1953 (From France)
-​ Real GDP: $116.576 Billion (as per 2023)
-​ Population: 17,063,669
Background:
-​ Most Cambodians consider themselves to be Khmers, descendants of the Angkor
Empire that extended over much of Southeast Asia and reached its zenith
between the 10th and 13th centuries.
-​ Attacks by the Thai and Cham (from present-day Vietnam) weakened the
empire, ushering in a long period of decline.
-​ The king placed the country under French protection in 1863, and it became
part of French Indochina in 1887.
-​ Following
Japanese occupation in World War II, Cambodia gained full
independence from France in 1953.
-​ In 1975, after a seven-year struggle, communist Khmer Rouge forces captured
Phnom Penh and evacuated all cities and towns.
-​ At least 1.5 million Cambodians died from execution, forced hardships, or
starvation during the Khmer Rouge regime under POL POT.
-​ A 1978 Vietnamese invasion drove the Khmer Rouge into the countryside, began
a 10-year Vietnamese occupation, and touched off 13 years of internecine
warfare in which a coalition of:
Khmer Rouge, Cambodian nationalists, and royalist insurgents, with assistance
from China, fought the Vietnamese-backed People’s Republic of Kampuchea
(PRK).
-​ The 1991 Paris Agreements ended the country’s civil war and mandated
democratic elections, which took place in 1993 and ushered in a period of
multi-party democracy with a constitutional monarchy.
-​ King Norodom SIHANOUK was reinstated as head of state, and the Cambodian
People's Party (CPP) and the royalist FUNCINPEC party formed a coalition
government.
-​ Nevertheless, the power-sharing arrangement proved fractious and fragile, and
in 1997, a coup led by CPP leader and former PRK prime minister HUN SEN
dissolved the coalition and sidelined FUNCINPEC.
-​ Despite further attempts at coalition governance, the CPP has since remained
in power through elections criticized for lacking fairness, political and judicial
corruption, media control, and influence over labor unions, all of which have
been enforced with violence and intimidation.
-​ HUN SEN remained as prime minister until 2023, when he transferred power to
his son, HUN MANET.
-​ HUN SEN has subsequently maintained considerable influence as the leader of
the CPP and the Senate. The CPP has also placed limits on civil society, press
freedom, and freedom of expression.
-​ Despite some economic growth and considerable investment from China over
the past decade, Cambodia remains one of East Asia's poorest countries.
-​ The remaining elements of the Khmer Rouge surrendered in 1999. A UN-backed
special tribunal established in Cambodia in 1997 tried some of the surviving
Khmer Rouge leaders for crimes against humanity and genocide. The tribunal
concluded in 2022 with three convictions.
-​ During the Khmer Rouge regime between 1975 and 1979 as many as 1.5 to 2
million people are estimated to have been killed or died as a result of
starvation, disease, or overwork – a loss of about 25% of the population.
Cambodia-US Relations:
-​ President Biden’s participation in the annual U.S.-ASEAN Summit and East Asia
Summit (EAS) will take place November 12-13 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, the 2022
ASEAN Chair.
-​ In 1950, the United States was among the first nations to recognize Cambodia,
and our two peoples share an enduring friendship.
-​
The United States values cooperation with Cambodia on a range of issues,
including condemnation of Russia’s war against Ukraine, implementation of UN
Security Council sanctions, including sanctions on the DPRK, law enforcement
cooperation to combat transnational crime, and Cambodia’s support for
elevating
the
U.S.-ASEAN
relationship
to
a
Comprehensive
Strategic
Partnership.
-​ We continue to underscore to Cambodia that strengthening our bilateral
relationship will depend upon Phnom Penh taking concrete steps to improve
respect for human rights and democratic processes and address widespread
concerns about the PRC’s military presence at Ream Naval Base.
-​ U.S.-Cambodia relations are based on strong historical and cultural linkages.
Cooperation on UN matters and assistance programs helped Cambodia realize
the stability and prosperity envisioned in the 1992 Paris Peace Agreements
ending civil war and continue to facilitate collaboration on bilateral, regional,
and global issues.
-​ The United States supports Cambodia’s role as ASEAN 2022 Chair and lauds its
stance in upholding the UN Charter, defending territorial integrity, and
co-sponsoring UN resolutions condemning Russia’s February full-scale invasion of
Ukraine and attempt to annex Ukrainian territory.
-​ The United States urges Cambodia to uphold its constitution and prohibit
exclusive control of its territory by any foreign country, including at Ream Naval
Base.
-​ The United States is committed to the Cambodian people and their aspirations
for a prosperous, democratic, and independent country.
-​ We urge Cambodia to take meaningful steps to reopen political and civic space,
including by resolving opposition leader Kem Sokha’s prolonged trial, and
releasing
other
detained
political
and
civil
society activists, including
U.S.-Cambodian citizen Seng Theary.
-​ With U.S. support, Cambodia has experienced decades of robust economic
growth and made significant progress toward achieving its Sustainable
Development Goals, including by reducing poverty, addressing the remnants of
past conflicts, and successfully navigating the global pandemic.
-​ Over the last 30 years, the United States has provided $3 billion in foreign
assistance for health, education, food security, economic growth, national
reconciliation, democracy and human rights, the environment, and clearance of
unexploded ordnance and landmines.
-​ The United States has also supported child nutrition and literacy; promoted
international labor standards and conditions; and provided training for child
protection, UN Security Council sanctions implementation, notably on the DPRK
sanctions regime, anti-money laundering, and countering trafficking in persons.
-​ Public health assistance in Cambodia has addressed infant and maternal
mortality, malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV/AIDS, and strengthened health
systems.
Successful U.S. cooperation has enabled zero malaria deaths since
2017, the removal of Cambodia from the World Health Organization’s list of top
30 tuberculosis burden countries, and HIV epidemic control with general adult
population prevalence of just 0.6 percent.
-​ U.S. agencies—including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
National Institutes of Health, U.S. Agency for International Development, U.S.
Navy, and Department of State—helped Cambodia stay healthy through the
COVID-19 pandemic and prepare for future outbreaks by building workforce
capacity,
establishing
surveillance,
providing
technical
assistance,
and
contributing more than $15 million in supplemental emergency aid and three
million safe and effective vaccine doses donated in partnership with COVAX.
-​ Cambodia has made longstanding efforts to provide a full accounting of
American personnel missing from the Vietnam War era. We also recognize with
appreciation that Cambodia allowed the cruise ship MS Westerdam to
disembark at the onset of the 2020 global pandemic, providing safe haven for
over 1,200 passengers and crew. (kh.usembassy.gov)
-​ The United States government yesterday imposed an arms embargo
on Cambodia, citing long-standing concerns about human rights,
corruption, and China’s growing influence in the country. According
to a statement from the Commerce Department, the move will
“restrict” access to “dual-use items,” “less-sensitive military items,”
and “defense articles and defense services” by Cambodia’s military
and intelligence agencies.
-​ “The
United
independence
States
and
remains
the
fully
sovereignty
committed
of
to
Cambodia’s
its people,” Commerce
Secretary Gina Raimondo said in the statement. “We urge the
Cambodian government to make meaningful progress in addressing
corruption and human rights abuses, and to work to reduce the
influence of the PRC military in Cambodia, which threatens regional
and global security.”
-​ This doesn’t mean a lot – the U.S. is not currently a supplier of arms
to Cambodia – but it marks the latest in long list of measures
designed to sanction Phnom Penh over its political repression and
increasingly close relationship with China. In particular, Washington
has become alarmed by the Chinese-funded refurbishment of the
Ream Naval Base on Cambodia’s south coast, which it fears will pave
the way for a permanent Chinese military presence on Cambodian
soil. The Cambodian government denies the claim.
-​ In its incipient pressure campaign aimed at reversing Cambodia’s
pivot to China, the U.S. has sanctioned five high-ranking Cambodian
military commanders and a timber tycoon – all close associates of
Prime Minister Hun Sen – over the fierce crackdown of the past five
years, which has seen the main opposition party banned and
Cambodian civil society forced into a state of siege. The most recent
officials to be sanctioned were Cambodian navy chief Admiral Tea
Vinh, the brother of Defense Minister Tea Banh, and General Chau
Phirun, director general of the Defense Ministry’s Material and
Technical Services Department. The U.S. claims both men are
conspiring to profit from the upgrades to Ream Naval Base.
-​ The sanctions against Tea Vinh and Chau Phirun, announced last
month, were also accompanied by a warning from the State
Department against U.S. businesses investing in Cambodia, due to the
country’s endemic corruption and the risk of possible involvement
with entities involved in human rights abuses, trafficking, and the
drug trade. These moves have taken place against a backdrop of
congressional resolutions calling for the government to increase its
pressure against the Cambodian government further.
-​ The arms embargo came as the news broke that State Department
Counselor Derek Chollet would pay a visit to Cambodia this week, in
addition to Indonesia. While in Phnom Penh, Chollet “will discuss
Cambodia’s upcoming chairmanship of ASEAN,” the State Department
announced, with the implication that he will seek to engage with the
Cambodian government over the controversial approach it plans to
take as ASEAN chair toward the situation in Myanmar, as well as
addressing other issues of regional import. How receptive the
Cambodians will be to his views will no doubt hinge on how vocally he
chooses to “reinforce U.S. support for civil society and the
Cambodian
people,”
the
other focus mentioned in the State
Department’s statement about Chollet’s trip.
-​ Herein lies the primary point of tension in Cambodia-U.S. relations.
As I’ve written in these pages previously, one of the reasons that Hun
Sen and his government have moved so close to China is precisely
because of Western pressure over democracy and human rights
issues, which they have long perceived as an attempt to undermine
the power of the ruling Cambodian People’s Party. The logical
implication is that any attempt to punish the Cambodian government
will only further harden its intransigence and deepen its relationship
on Beijing.
-​ In October, Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia Wang Wentian said
that the two nations were bound by an “ironclad brotherhood,” and in
a clear reference to the U.S. and other Western governments, said
they would “tolerate no interference from external forces.” Similarly,
Cambodia dismissed last month’s sanctions as “politically motivated,”
while Hun Sen today told the U.S. government to go ahead and freeze
the U.S.-based assets of Cambodian officials, stating that none had
their assets there anyway.
-​ The greatest leverage that Washington has over Phnom Penh – and
the one threat that might shift Hun Sen’s calculus – is the possible
revocation of the trade preferences that Cambodia enjoys under the
Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), which smooth its access to
the U.S. market, the largest for Cambodian-made clothes, footwear,
bags, and travel products.
-​ However, the revocation of the GSP would likely to harm the
country’s garment and apparel manufacturing sector, potentially
costing many thousands of jobs. It was for similar reasons that the
European Union, in reaction to the CPP government’s recent harsh
political crackdown, chose to suspend trade preferences on just a
portion of Cambodia’s exports to the European market.
-​ Anthony Nelson, a senior director for East Asia and the Pacific at
international consultancy Albright Stonebridge Group, told the South
China Morning Post recently that it was “very unlikely” that the
Cambodian government would take enough steps to mollify its critics
in Washington. At the same time, he said, U.S. policymakers
recognized that the “understand a revocation of GSP would hurt
vulnerable workers first, so perhaps some face-saving loosening of
the political space can be found.”
-​ Even if that were true, it would still leave the fundamental issues in
Cambodia-U.S. relations unresolved. Given the recent hardening of
attitudes on both sides, progress now requires one of two things:
either for the U.S. to compromise on values – to soften its human
rights advocacy – or for the Cambodian government to compromise
on domestic politics: to introduce significant political reforms.
-​ Neither of these looks likely at the present juncture, ensuring that
the spiral of mutual incomprehension that has marked recent
relations between Washington and Phnom Penh will continue for the
foreseeable future. (Diplomat)
Recent years:
-​ Cambodia
has
moved to become Beijing's closest partner in
Southeast Asia. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet visited Beijing
in September, weeks after he was sworn in as the country's new
premier.
-​ At same time, US and Cambodian ties continue to sour, with
Washington pointing out Cambodia's poor human rights record, and a
crackdown on political parties and dissidents.
-​ US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin will look to smooth relations
when he visits Cambodia on June 4 after attending the Shangri-La
Dialogue in Singapore. Austin is also meeting Chinese officials as part
of the talks.
-​ "US Defense Secretary Austin will soon be in Cambodia to greet Hun
Manet, but like much of Biden's foreign policy in Southeast Asia, he
will be on the back foot," Cogan said.
-​ "Austin's visit has to mix the pragmatic with the normative, as the
tough line on human rights have pushed Cambodia closer to China,
and the advantage that has given Beijing can be seen across the
country," he added.
-​ China is already Cambodia's top trading partner and biggest foreign
investor. And it shows, with new public and private infrastructure
funded by Beijing, including both roads, airports, hotels and
high-rises.
-​ Cambodia is also part of China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a
global infrastructure funding project.
-​ Oren Samet, a PhD candidate at the University of California
researching authoritarianism in Southeast Asia, said Beijing's support
does not come along with the scrutiny and criticism of Cambodia's
governance that is seen in Western countries.
-​ "The close relationship with Beijing is the product of longer-term
shifts, which have cemented China as the Cambodian People Party's
(CPP) main international patron," said Samet.
-​ "In contrast with traditional Western donors, Beijing does not care at
all about Cambodia's human rights abuses or lack of democracy, and
that works well for the Cambodian government, which has more free
reign to suppress opposition and avoid difficult reforms," he told DW.
-​ Samet said it will be a challenge for Washington and Phnom Penh to
"repair frayed relations and strengthen strategic ties after a
difficult few years."
-​ "Democratic deficits and rights concerns will remain stumbling blocks.
Cambodia hasn't improved on this front at all in the past decade, and
it is unlikely to do so in the near future," he added.
-​ Critics call Cambodia's leadership the "Hun-Dynasty." The ruling CPP
has faced little challenge to its power, with opposition parties being
suppressed in recent years.
-​ Critics say Hun Sen, who led Cambodia for nearly four decades, from
1985 to 2023, ran Cambodia like a dictatorship, cracking down on
both political rivals and free independent media, as well as opposing
free and fair elections.
-​ Cambodia ranks second-to-last, 141 out of 142, in The World Justice
Project's global rankings for 2023. The rankings are based on several
indicators including human rights, social justice and the economy.
-​ Cambodia and China have both described their relations as
"ironclad," with official ties stretching back to 1958.
-​ Manet pledged stronger ties with Beijing on his first overseas visit as
Prime
Minister in September, and said he hoped for closer
cooperation with China on international and regional issues.
-​ "I am skeptical that things will change much under Hun Manet. Despite
being superficially more Western-oriented than his father, he
presides over what is fundamentally the same regime as before," said
Samet.
-​ Beijing's influence in Cambodia is also seen in forums like the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), a 10-member
political and economic union, of which China is not a member, but is a
"comprehensive" strategic partner.
-​ Cambodia often stands in support of China's regional goals, which
include political ambitions like claiming ownership over much of the
South China Sea.
-​ The Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam, all ASEAN members, strongly
dispute these maritime claims, but with Cambodia on the side of
Beijing, the country has become a leverage point for China.
-​ "Competition and conflict over the South China Sea have driven
further sclerosis within ASEAN," said Samet.
-​ "Beijing is making its influence felt across the region, but Cambodia
has been particularly strongly impacted," Samet added
Problems:
1.​ Corruption:
The level of corruption in Cambodia exceeds most countries in the
world. Despite adopting an 'Anti-Corruption Law' in 2010, corruption
prevails throughout the country. Corruption affects the judiciary, the
police, and other state institutions. Favouritism by government
officials and impunity is commonplace. Lack of a clear distinction
between the courts and the executive branch of government also
makes for a deep politicisation of the judicial system.
2.​ Lack of free speech:
Journalists covering a protest over disputed election results in
Phnom Penh on 22 September 2013 say they were deliberately
attacked by police and men in plain clothes, with slingshots and stun
guns. The attack against the president of the Overseas Press Club of
Cambodia, Rick Valenzuela, was captured on video. The violence
came amid political tensions as the opposition boycotted the opening
of
Parliament
due
to concerns about electoral fraud. Seven
reporters sustained minor injuries while at least two Cambodian
protesters were hit by slingshot projectiles and hospitalised.
3.​ Oppression and Violence:
●​ The Cambodian People's Party (CPP) is the sole dominant-party
in Cambodia. The CPP currently commands 120 of the 125 seats
in the National Assembly and 55 of 62 seats in the Senate.
●​ Hun Sen and his government have seen much controversy. Hun
Sen was a former Khmer Rouge commander who was originally
installed by the Vietnamese and, after the Vietnamese left the
country, maintained his strong man position by violence and
oppression when deemed necessary.
●​ In 1997, fearing the growing power of his co-prime minister,
Prince Norodom Ranariddh, Hun launched a coup, using the
army to purge Ranariddh and his supporters. Ranariddh was
ousted and fled to Paris while other opponents of Hun Sen were
arrested, tortured, and some summarily executed.
4.​ Human Rights Violation:
●​ A US State Department report says "forces under Hun Sen and
the Cambodian People's Party have committed frequent and
large-scale abuses, including extrajudicial killings and torture,
with impunity".[160] According to the 2016 Global Slavery Index,
an estimated 256,800 people are enslaved in modern-day
Cambodia, or 1.65% of the population.
●​ Forced land evictions by senior officials, security forces, and
government-connected business leaders are commonplace in
Cambodia.[162] Land has been confiscated from hundreds of
thousands of Cambodians over more than a decade for the
purpose of self-enrichment and maintaining power of various
groups of special interests.[163] Credible non-governmental
organisations
estimate
that
"770,000
people
have
been
adversely affected by land grabbing covering at least four
million hectares (nearly 10 million acres) of land that have been
confiscated", says Paris-based International Federation for
Human Rights (FIDH).