PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) - Cambodia has more pressing concerns than repaying millions of dollars (euros) it owes the United States, a government spokesman said Friday, rebuffing Washington's latest demand for settlement of loans from the 1970s.
«We have many affairs to attend to,» said government spokesman Khieu Kanharith, noting that repaying US$339 million (€230 million) to the U.S. was not high on Cambodia's priority list.
The comments came a day after Scot Marciel, the U.S. State Department's deputy assistant secretary for East Asian and Pacific affairs, urged Cambodia to sign a draft agreement on repaying the debt. Marciel made the remarks Thursday in Washington in testimony before the House Foreign Affairs Committee's Subcommittee on Asia.
The outstanding debt stems from rice, cotton and other agricultural commodities financed by low-interest loans the U.S. provided to Cambodia during the regime of Gen. Lon Nol in the early 1970s.
Lon Nol came to power in a 1970 coup that ousted Prince Norodom Sihanouk. The United States was the main financial and military supporter of Lon Nol's regime until it was toppled by the genocidal Khmer Rouge movement in April 1975.
The two countries have not yet come up with a repayment plan, partly because the Cambodian government refuses to accept responsibility for debts incurred by the Lon Nol regime, and partly because of a disagreement over the amount of debt owed, Marciel said.
After years of deadlock, Cambodia agreed «in principle with the amount of principal it owed» in 2006 but then refused to sign a draft bilateral agreement drawn up by the U.S., Marciel said. Cambodia has subsequently demanded additional concessions, including a lower interest rate, he said.
About US$154 million (€105 million) of the debt «would be due immediately,» if the 2006 agreement is implemented this year, he said.
Khieu Kanharith said immediate payback was unlikely.
«Even if we have to repay it, we can't repay it because that would severely affect our financial and economic situation,» he said.
Despite recent economic growth, Cambodia still relies on hundreds of millions of dollars (euros) in annual foreign assistance for development.
The government spokesman added that the United States «has not compensated the Cambodian people» for its bombing of Cambodia during the Vietnam war either.
The difficulties Cambodia faces today as it tries to rebuild after more than two decades of civil war «are also partly the result of the American bombing.
On the Web: www.state.gov/p/eap/rls/rm/2008/02/100891.htm
«We have many affairs to attend to,» said government spokesman Khieu Kanharith, noting that repaying US$339 million (€230 million) to the U.S. was not high on Cambodia's priority list.
The comments came a day after Scot Marciel, the U.S. State Department's deputy assistant secretary for East Asian and Pacific affairs, urged Cambodia to sign a draft agreement on repaying the debt. Marciel made the remarks Thursday in Washington in testimony before the House Foreign Affairs Committee's Subcommittee on Asia.
The outstanding debt stems from rice, cotton and other agricultural commodities financed by low-interest loans the U.S. provided to Cambodia during the regime of Gen. Lon Nol in the early 1970s.
Lon Nol came to power in a 1970 coup that ousted Prince Norodom Sihanouk. The United States was the main financial and military supporter of Lon Nol's regime until it was toppled by the genocidal Khmer Rouge movement in April 1975.
The two countries have not yet come up with a repayment plan, partly because the Cambodian government refuses to accept responsibility for debts incurred by the Lon Nol regime, and partly because of a disagreement over the amount of debt owed, Marciel said.
After years of deadlock, Cambodia agreed «in principle with the amount of principal it owed» in 2006 but then refused to sign a draft bilateral agreement drawn up by the U.S., Marciel said. Cambodia has subsequently demanded additional concessions, including a lower interest rate, he said.
About US$154 million (€105 million) of the debt «would be due immediately,» if the 2006 agreement is implemented this year, he said.
Khieu Kanharith said immediate payback was unlikely.
«Even if we have to repay it, we can't repay it because that would severely affect our financial and economic situation,» he said.
Despite recent economic growth, Cambodia still relies on hundreds of millions of dollars (euros) in annual foreign assistance for development.
The government spokesman added that the United States «has not compensated the Cambodian people» for its bombing of Cambodia during the Vietnam war either.
The difficulties Cambodia faces today as it tries to rebuild after more than two decades of civil war «are also partly the result of the American bombing.
On the Web: www.state.gov/p/eap/rls/rm/2008/02/100891.htm
18 comments:
KhmerGovernment must demand the United States repayment of the destruction by carpet'bombing and the consequences of this bombing with chemicals that are malformations in newborns.
2.27 you are right, we are entitled to the reparation payment for the carpet bonbing destruction of our country and the amount they
(the yankees) are claiming is no other than the cost of theirs bombs.
It is absolutely immoral and misanthropic to even presume that Cambodia must repay those loans. The U. S. violated international law and the Geneva convention by bombing the country back into the middle ages and now they have the nerve to ask their money back. How much more cynical can they become? First they orchestrate a coup d'etat, then they destroy the country, and now.....? Unconscionable.
Yes, without U.S. carpet bombings the Vietcong would take only 24 hours to take over Cambodia instead of 5 years, and may last longer than that Lon Nol's government was not so corrupted.
The U.S is demanding Cambodia to pay back the money they loaned to support their war. All in a sudden the U.S is ignorant to be doing such a thing. It does not take a genius to figure it out that it is wrong to demand such a thing. What the U.S ought to do is compansate hundreds of thousands of Cambodian that were killed from the U.S bombings and the suffering followed that...
Everyone seems to assume that Cambodia belongs to Cambodians but in reality it did not. The last time I visited Cambodia in 2005 it look like 1/3 of the entire population are vietnamese. Think about 10, 15, 20 years from now what's the vietnamise population might lead to?
I urge the Phnom Penh to exercise its legitimacy in demanding for compensations of U.S. for the Cambodian victims of U.S.'s secret bombing, on March 18, 1969 and its ground invasion on April 1970 during the Nixon's administration. I beleive the U.S. needs not to be oblivious to its illegitimate acts, instead, must recognize own-mistake. The appropriation of the compensation must be offered and distributed to the victims.
Early on the morning of March 18,1969, for the first time, forty-eight of the B-52 bombing boxes were on Cambodian territory. The secret bombing continued for fourteen months, until May 1970, during which American B-52s flew 3,875 sorties and dropped 108,823 tons of bombs with no sucess in obliterating its intended targets. In the spring of 1970, the ground invasion was deliberately launched. Consequently, hundreds of thousands of Cambodians had been killed. Defense Secretary Laird was supportive of the bombing.
The secretiveness of former president Nixon and Dr. Kissinger, a National Advisor and Secretary of State, had created disastrous consequences in Cambodia and to her people.
For more details, please read this book "KISSINGER" by Walter Isaacson.
Looks like for once we are all in agreement here, they can stick the request for loans in their ear. I highly recommend "Sideshow' how Kissenger and Nixon destroyed Cambodia. It's alllllll there.
USA, please make cambodia repay all their debts, especially if their leaders are so corrupted and especially if they refuse to implement the anti-corruption law that punish severely those leaders, put in office by the cambodia people who have only personal or special interest in mind and who cares nothing about national interest. please make them responsible for their own commitment to the cambodian people. thank you for your help.
I can't believe that Uncle SAM is demanding AH HUN SEN Vietcong slave government to pay back the debt incurred by AH LON NOL corrupted government in 1970! This is outrageous!
AH LON NOL government was installed by Uncle SAM and AH LON NOL used the American loan money as incentive to buy more corrupted leaders to join his government to maintain his power! Even his last day in power when he fled Cambodia bounded for United States and he took a lot of that money with him too! So the question is who stole and spent all the fucken money? It is AH LON NOL himself of course but the fucken problem is AH LON NOL is already death and who can argue with him now? But I heard recently that one of AH LON NOL’s son want to run for political office in Cambodia and maybe now it is a good opportunity to go after AH LON NOL son for all the American debt incurred by his father!
I have to wonder what about the South Vietnamese government under the leadership of AH Ngo Dinh Diem which was supported by Uncle SAM in 1960 and Uncle SAM even gave and loaned more money and weapons than Cambodia which is now controlled by the Vietcong government and I don't see Uncle SAM dare to ask the Vietcong government to pay back those debt incurred by the South Vietnamese government under AH Ngo Dinh Diem leadership? This is just a fucken double standard because Cambodia under AH HUN SEN Vietcong puppet government is weak and corrupted!
When everything is said and done, Cambodia still have the same Vietcong puppet government since 1979! Any fool who believed that Cambodia right now is sovereign nation and is free of foreign occupation and intervention need serious reality check because the Vietcong are flooding Cambodia with million and million of illegal Viet under AH HUN SEN Vietcong slave puppet government!
By the way, there is no such thing as Cambodian government at the present but there is such thing as Cambodian Vietcong puppet government installed by the Vietcong government since 1979! And my recommendation to Uncle SAM is to ask the Vietcong government in Hanoi to pay back all those debt from AH LON NOL government and AH Ngo Dinh Diem government!
This is a dog eats dog world created by Uncle SAM!
Ah Lon nol is no different than ah Sam Rainsy... Both are US puppets.
US are the destroyer. Where they go, they destroy. Unlike England, they build.
To 5:18AM
Are you saying that the communist never destroy anything? Ahahhahah
You see only one side of the coin!
I read with great interest regarding the laon repayment; further, I was intrigued with all comments everyone has contributed in response to the loan repayment's demand from the United States.
Now, we want to hear from our man, Mr. Sichan Siv,(although someone in the Cambodian community preferably called him the "One")have to say regarding the recent and unprecedented demand from the United States.
On behalf of all Cambodian people in Cambodia or abroad would like to hear what Mr. Sichan Siv has to say in the wake of this igregiously immoral demand from the United States.
Moreover, the incident will present a momentus challenge aim to test Mr. Sichan's internal affairs background. Or, perhaps he might be aversed to challenge the U.S., since he is still kowtowing and underpinning the U.S. policy to secure his current position.
We are looking forward to hearing from you, Mr. Sichan Siv.
Well! It is logical if the Vietcong government controlled both the South Viet government and the AH HUN SEN Vietcong puppet government and it should be the Vietcong who must pay all those loan money back to Uncle SAM!
chansiv is a fucking loser
he not helpd us
he to buzy fuckking arund
he'd don't cared this not he problem
I heard people condemned American carpet bombings in 1970 which the goal was to prevent the North Vietnamse Army/Vietcong from taking over Cambodia, however I never heard people condemned Vietnam for for its intention swallow Cambodia since 1950's up to now. Are we shortsighted or what?
To 9:32AM
I must admit that Cambodian people sometime are shortsighted because AH HUN SEN Vietcong puppet government has been doing such a good job in restricting free speech and the free flow of information!
if the americans think that way, they have to pay for the fall of CAmbodia to the khmer rouge and the start of year zero. Thgey have to payu for the two millions victims and for the actual situation of CAmbodia: corruption and poverty. Their secret bombings in the 60's and 70's has force a lot of people to join the khmer rouge, because their wife and children were killed by american bombs. American life has more value that khmer life or iraki life? Look what happened for the aircraft bombed by Lybian terroirsts in Scotland...the americans get 100 times more compensations that europoeans. So insane....
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