Word: khmer
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...arguing the above, John Cloud's opinion piece ("Finally, Hope in Southeast Asia," November 17) oversimplifies U.S. policy towards Cambodia in the 1980s. Cloud is, of course, justified to say that our policy overlooked human rights concerns; indirect military support and direct diplomatic support for the genocidal Khmer Rouge is unforgivable...
...Vietnam invaded Cambodia and overthrew the Khmer Rouge regime. For the following nine years, more than 200,000 Vietnamese troops occupied the country and kept the governemnt in power. Two years ago, most of the Vietnamese troops left Cambodia, but the current Hun Sen regime is still heavily dependent on Hanoi...
Vietnamese involvement in Cambodia cannot simply be seen as a better alternative to the Khmer Rouge. The Cambodian people themselves--whose point of view Cloud ignores--were happy to see the Khmer Rouge go, but were less enthusiastic about the Vietnamese presence; ethnic tensions between the two peoples have always been high...
Furthermore, other Southeast Asian nations were alarmed by Vietnam's 1979 invasion and feared further expansionist action. Thailand, Laos, Burma and others took a strong stand against Vietnams's action, and supported the rebel coalition, which includes the Khmer Rouge...
...wrong to help bolster the Khmer Rouge? Of course. Was the U.S. wrong not to recognize the Vietnamese-installed Cambodian government? No. We cannot overlook the fact that a historically hostile Vietnam took over Cambodia...