Wikileaks: 03HANOI669, VIETNAM AND CAMBODIA: LOOKING FORWARD [-Border issues between Cambodia and Vietnam]

Nguyen Du Hanh, Director of the Western Border

Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' (MFA) Border

Commission, admitted separately that the border issue is

"complicated," but stated that both sides would like to

settle it. He pointed out that, in the early 1980s, Vietnam

and Cambodia had signed "a number" of international

conventions concerning border demarcation. In addition,

there was a bilateral agreement in 1985 that led to "some

demarcation activity" from 1986-1990. Hanh noted that this

activity ceased with a change of governments in Cambodia

after the UN-sponsored elections. However, Hanh claimed

that the two sides "are not far apart" - of the nearly 1,000-

kilometer border, "under 200 kilometers are in dispute." At

the June 2002 joint border commission, both sides agreed to

"join hands" to solve the border issue, he noted. Hanh

suggested that "in the end, the border will be based on the

French demarcation, with minor adjustments." Commenting on

recent developments, Hanh stated that there have been talks

at the "expert" working level "once or twice a year."

However, progress has been "slow" because more senior

officials have been "busy" and because there is a lack of

"legal documents on which to base final negotiations."

Reference ID: 03HANOI669

Created: 2003-03-19 02:49

Released: 2011-08-30 01:44

Classification: UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY

Origin: Embassy Hanoi

This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available. UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 HANOI 000669

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

STATE FOR EAP/BCLTV AND INL/AAE

E.O. 12958: N/A

TAGS: PREL SNAR SOCI PHUM ETRD ECON EAID CB VM ETMIN CNARC ASEAN TIP

SUBJECT: VIETNAM AND CAMBODIA: LOOKING FORWARD

REF: A. Hanoi 527 B. 02 Hanoi 2980 C. 02 Hanoi 701

¶1. (U) SUMMARY. Vietnam and Cambodia have a complex

relationship with a volatile history, but both sides now

appear to focus on the future. Cross border smuggling of

drugs and other goods as well as human trafficking have

emerged as significant problems. Vietnam reportedly does

not view the 2001 Montagnard exodus as having much impact on

the bilateral relationship. Border demarcation remains an

unresolved issue. Two-way trade is quite low but there is

mild optimism. Bilateral cooperation on Vietnamese missing

in action (MIA) is good. END SUMMARY.

------------------------------------

A LONG BORDER AND INTERTWINED HISTORY

------------------------------------

¶2. (SBU) Vietnam and Cambodia share an approximately 1,000

kilometer border, including the Vietnamese provinces (from

north to south) of Kon Tum, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Binh Phuoc,

Tay Ninh, Long An, An Giang, and Kien Giang. Due to a

common French colonial past and, later, the "American" War,

Vietnam and Cambodia have much in common. Vietnam's late

1978 invasion, according to Cambodia Embassy Counselor Tauch

Kemary, while viewed "by many, even most" as "liberating"

the country from the Khmer Rouge, also "reminded us of our

vulnerability." There are many who continue to "fear the

Vietnamese" because "they have demonstrated the power to

dominate Cambodia at different times in our history."

Notwithstanding that episode, in recent years, the two

countries have been "trying to find more common ground" and

advance the bilateral relationship, Kemary noted.

¶3. (U) Since the 1990s, bilateral ties have seen a slow

but steady improvement, with the signing of various

agreements. Among the more important ones relate to:

--Trade and economic cooperation (1995);

--establishment of the Joint Committee on Economic,

Cultural, Scientific, and Technical Affairs (1995);

--cooperation between Vietnam's Ministry of Agricultural and

Rural Development and Cambodia's Ministry of Agriculture,

Forestry, and Fishery (1997);

--Anti-criminal cooperation between the two Ministries of

Interior (1997);

--Land transport cooperation (1998);

--Counternarcotics cooperation (1998);

--Education and training cooperation 2000 - 2005 (1999);

--Labor cooperation 2000 - 2002 (2000);

--Investment protection and incentives (2001); and,

--Trading, exchange of goods and trade services in border

areas (2001).

¶4. (SBU) According to information provided by Vietnam's

Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), senior-level visits from

Vietnam to Cambodia predominate official exchanges. Nguyen

Phuong Binh, MFA Institute of International Relations (IIR)

Deputy Director, suggested that this could be because

Cambodian government leaders are "reluctant" to appear too

close to the GVN leadership. Visits to Vietnam "could leave

them open" to criticism from opposition politicians, she

added. Binh predicted that this imbalance "may change as

bilateral relations continue to improve." However, upcoming

Cambodian elections in July will "influence to what extend

and how fast relations improve," she predicted.

¶5. (U) Since 2000, GVN leaders who have visited Cambodia

have included then-National Assembly Chairman (and now

Communist Party General Secretary) Nong Duc Manh (2000);

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung (2000); then-Minister

of Public Security Le Minh Huong (2001); President Tran Duc

Luong (2001); Minister of Defense Pham Van Tra (2002); and

National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Van An (2002). On the

Cambodian side, high level visits included Prime Minister

Hun Sen in 1998 (on a bilateral visit) and again in 2002 (as

head of the Cambodian delegation to a tripartite meeting

with Vietnam and Laos held in Ho Chi Minh City); Foreign

Minister Hor Nam Hong in 2001; and most recently, Princess

Norodom Vachara, chairman of the National Assembly's Foreign

Affairs Commission, in January 2003 to discuss border issues

with Vietnam's National Assembly Chairman An.

--------------------------------------------- -----

SIGNIFICANT CROSS BORDER SMUGGLING AND TRAFFICKING

--------------------------------------------- -----

¶6. (SBU) The Cambodian Embassy's Kemary admitted that

cross-border smuggling is a "major problem" and one that "we

must continue to work on." Drug smuggling from Cambodia,

according to DEA's Hanoi Country Office, includes heroin and

amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS), mainly into Ho Chi Minh

City. Some of the heroin is for domestic use and some is

transshipped to Australia. Cambodia is Ho Chi Minh City's

major ATS source. Large quantities of marijuana also enter

southern Vietnam from Cambodia, mainly for transshipment to

the PRC (Ref b). Kemary claimed that Cambodian police meet

"regularly" with their Vietnamese counterparts; however, he

lamented that the Cambodian police have "very few"

resources" for patrolling the border areas. Kemary also

noted that the smuggling of manufactured goods is "very

common and works against real economic growth between

Cambodia and Vietnam." He added that most of the goods

smuggled into Vietnam come from Thailand. He claimed that

most of this smuggling was due to "Thai criminal gangs" who

"encourage corruption" among Cambodian border officials.

¶7. (SBU) Human trafficking is also a major issue. While

few reliable statistics exist, the UN Office of Drugs and

Crime's (UNODC) Hanoi staff have reported that, of the

estimated 20,000 Vietnamese prostitutes in Cambodia, a

significant number are the victims of human traffickers.

Several dozen Vietnamese trafficking victims were officially

repatriated from Cambodia in 2002, but because victims tend

to avoid notoriety, experts suspect many more return through

unofficial channels. In 2002, the International Office for

Migration (IOM) again confirmed that human trafficking from

Vietnam to Cambodia had become more serious in recent years.

¶8. (U) As the Embassy's Trafficking in Persons Reports

(ref a is for 2002) noted, women and girls trafficked abroad

from Vietnam go primarily to Cambodia and the PRC. There is

also evidence that some Vietnamese citizens are trafficked

through Cambodia to third countries. Nguyen Sy Tuan, Deputy

Director of the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies,

commented that, while the human trafficking problem is a

major issue, it has received "less bilateral attention" than

drugs. He opined that, as international pressure increases

on the human trafficking issue, Vietnam and Cambodia's

leaders "will have to focus more on the human trafficking

issue."

----------------

MONTAGNARD ISSUE

----------------

¶9. (SBU) The IIR's Binh discounted the impact on the 2001

exodus of about 1,000 Montagnards into Cambodia following

February/March 2001 demonstrations in the Central Highlands

and the 2002 collapse of the Cambodia/Vietnam/UNHCR

Tripartite Agreement as ongoing issues in bilateral ties.

People from the Central Highlands who crossed "illegally"

into Cambodia did so with the intent of reaching a third

country, he claimed. Once the United Nations became

involved, the problem took on a "multilateral context," he

added. He declined to comment on fresh reports of active

Cambodian police cooperation in returning additional 2002

cases of would-be Montagnard escapees, which, according to

Vietnamese media accounts, led to multi-year prison

sentences for at least five Gia Lai residents on March 12.

-------------------------------

BORDER DEMARCATION: SLOW GOING

-------------------------------

¶10. (SBU) Notwithstanding periodic MFA announcements over

the past few years that the border issue will be settled

"this year," border demarcation remains unresolved.

According to the Southeast Asia Institute's Tuan, the

current border essentially represents the old French

colonial demarcation. However, he noted that the border

"does not always agree with the current maps." He added

that people who live and try to make a living near the

border "tend to move back and forth; border lines do not

mean much to them." Even though "both governments warn

their people" against farming close to the border, such

activities continue to take place because of "the demand for

rice fields and access to water," he added.

¶11. (SBU) Nguyen Du Hanh, Director of the Western Border

Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' (MFA) Border

Commission, admitted separately that the border issue is

"complicated," but stated that both sides would like to

settle it. He pointed out that, in the early 1980s, Vietnam

and Cambodia had signed "a number" of international

conventions concerning border demarcation. In addition,

there was a bilateral agreement in 1985 that led to "some

demarcation activity" from 1986-1990. Hanh noted that this

activity ceased with a change of governments in Cambodia

after the UN-sponsored elections. However, Hanh claimed

that the two sides "are not far apart" - of the nearly 1,000-

kilometer border, "under 200 kilometers are in dispute." At

the June 2002 joint border commission, both sides agreed to

"join hands" to solve the border issue, he noted. Hanh

suggested that "in the end, the border will be based on the

French demarcation, with minor adjustments." Commenting on

recent developments, Hanh stated that there have been talks

at the "expert" working level "once or twice a year."

However, progress has been "slow" because more senior

officials have been "busy" and because there is a lack of

"legal documents on which to base final negotiations."

¶12. (SBU) Separately, the Southeast Asia Institute's Tuan

noted that the border had become a "hot" issue in Cambodia's

politics. (Note: it has not become a hot issue in Vietnam,

unlike the more controversial land border agreement with the

PRC in 1999. End note) Tuan added that the opposition

parties have "severely" criticized the present government

for appearing "too willing" to make concessions to Vietnam.

He predicted that there would be no further progress until

after the Cambodian elections in July. Further progress

will depend "to some extent on who is in power," he

predicted. He claimed that an expected senior level meeting

to discuss seven outstanding border issues -- scheduled for

March 2003 -- had been postponed due to "domestic political

considerations" in Cambodia.

------------------------

TWO-WAY TRADE: NOT MUCH

------------------------

¶13. (SBU) Without citing a specific figure, Hanh admitted

that two-way trade was "very low." MFA press releases

concerning Vietnam-Cambodia relations between 2001 and 2003

include numerous proclamations and pledges of "continued

support and cooperation" but almost none related

specifically to two-way trade. The Cambodian Embassy's

Kemary suggested that there is some potential for improving

legal two-way trade, especially once the border issue is

settled and authorities on both sides take further steps to

reduce smuggling. Kemary said that the Cambodian government

is "hopeful" about the potential for Cambodia "modestly" to

improve especially its exports of clothing and shoes to

Vietnam. (Comment: Since clothing and shoes are well-

developed domestic and export industries in Vietnam, this

would seem unlikely. End Comment.) Separately, the

Southeast Asia Institute's Tuan opined that improved two-way

trade is "unlikely until border and smuggling issues are

addressed and the Cambodian economy produces more."

¶14. (U) In addition to trade, Kemary noted that Cambodia

"appreciates" Vietnam's rice assistance. (Note: According

to an October 2002 MFA announcement, the GVN donated 500

tons of rice to Cambodia's Kandal province. End note.)

---------------

MIA COOPERATION

---------------

¶15. (SBU) Tuan pointed to the MIA issue as one that

demonstrates a "good" level of bilateral cooperation. He

said that Cambodia has been helpful in providing information

on Vietnamese remains. According to the Detachment Two

Joint Task Force - Full Accounting office in Hanoi,

Vietnam's military has conducted dry-season recovery

operations in Cambodia over the past three years. Each

year, the two sides meet, work out an operations plan,

deploy Vietnamese troops into agreed-upon areas, conduct

operations, and repatriate the remains to Vietnam. An

August 2002 visit by GVN Defense Minister Senior Lieutenant

General Pham Van Tra also focused on this issue. During

Prime Minister Hun Sen's trip to Ho Chi Minh City for the

2002 tripartite meeting, he visited the commander of

Vietnam's Military Zone 7 in Dong Nai (southern Vietnam).

Tuan opined that Hun Sen "may have" raised MIA cooperation

during that visit as well. According to a January 2003 MFA

announcement, 2,344 sets of remains have been repatriated to

Vietnam.

-------

COMMENT

-------

¶16. (U) A mix of historical animosities, cultural

rivalries, and complex leadership relations stemming from

Vietnam's decade-long occupation and efforts to install its

own favorites in power in Phnom Penh complicate the

bilateral relationship. Vietnamese now appear to put aside

the recent past and deal with Cambodia as just another

fellow ASEAN member and good neighbor, while still seeking

to dominate a mini-Indochina lobby within ASEAN seeking

extra help from richer members. While Vietnam prefers to

look forward in its 21st century relations with Cambodia,

the likelihood is that Cambodia will be less and less

important to Vietnam, as it focuses on more important

economic and political relationships with the U.S., Japan,

and the EU and seeks WTO accession.

BURGHARDT