Government Downplays Cuts to US Military Aid

15 August 2013
The Cambodia Daily
Government / International relations
Australian Defense Force Academy / Cambodia National Rescue Party / Cambodia's People Party / Canberra / Chinese aid / CNRP / CPP / Defense Minister Tea Banh / development aid / Development policies and administration / Elections / Europe / Government / Hun Manet / international relations / Koy Kuong / Laos / Lieutenant Colonel San Savoeun / Marie Harf / Ministry of Foreign Affairs / Ministry of National Defense / National Counter Terrorism Special Forces / NEC / Nem Sowath / Phnom Penh / Prime Minister Hun Sen / RCAF / Ros Chhorm / Royal Cambodian Air Force / Royal Cambodian Armed Forces / Sean McIntosh / Soeng Samnang / South China Sea / Southeast Asia / Thailand / U.S. Embassy / U.S. State Department / United States aid / United States Pacific Air Forces

The government on Wednesday insisted that its decision to postpone U.S.-backed military assistance programs following the July 28 election would not have a negative impact on relations between the two countries. …

Marie Harf, the spokeswoman for the U.S. State Department, also said on Tuesday that the decision was not something the U.S. had wanted and noted it had happened in the context of the National Election Committee announcing preliminary results to an election that is currently being disputed by the CPP and CNRP. …

Koy Kuong, spokesman for the Foreign Affairs Ministry, insisted that the delay would not be a problem for Cambodia’s international relations amid views that Cambodia took the decision after receiving calls from lawmakers in the U.S. to cut military aid to Cambodia altogether if the national election was deemed unfair.

“The Ministry of National Defense has already made the clarification about this,” he said, referring to comments made by Lieutenant General Nem Sowath, director-general of the Defense Ministry’s general department of policy and foreign affairs, on Tuesday that attempted to play down the delay.

“The relationship between Cambodia and the U.S. is still normal,” Mr. Kuong added. …

But Lieutenant General Ros Chhorm, cabinet chief for Defense Minister Tea Banh, said that Cambodian participation in some U.S. military assistance programs, including an air force training scheme, have simply been delayed “because we are forming a government.”

Royal Cambodian Air Force commander Lieutenant General Soeng Samnang, named one specific program that had been delayed.

“A training program that has been postponed is called Pacific Defender,” he said. …

It is still unclear what other programs are affected by the delay—which the U.S. said was a unilateral decision by Cambodia—or whether it has affected U.S. training of the National Counter Terrorism Special Forces, led by Prime Minister Hun Sen’s son, Lieutenant General Hun Manet. …

http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/government-downplays-cuts-to-us-military-aid-39568/