Hun Sen pushes Cambodia's case for ASEAN entry<\/p>\n
PHNOM PENH (AP): Prime Minister Hun Sen pushed Cambodia's case
\non Tuesday for entry this month into the Association of Southeast
\nAsian Nations, saying the country had met all the conditions.<\/p>\n
\"I strongly hope there won't be any reasons to leave Cambodia
\nout of the regional framework, because we have fulfilled
\neverything we and our friends have required,\" Hun Sen said at a
\nceremony introducing his trusted adviser, Hor Nam Hong, as the
\nnew foreign minister.<\/p>\n
But Hun Sen spoke as Singapore's Foreign Minister S.
\nJayakumar, currently the chairman of ASEAN's standing committee,
\neffectively ruled out Cambodia's chances of being admitted before
\na Dec. 15-Dec. 16 summit in Hanoi.<\/p>\n
Jayakumar said he had no plans to convene an urgent meeting of
\nASEAN foreign ministers and said the Hanoi meeting would focus on
\nthe economic slowdown affecting the region, not Cambodia.<\/p>\n
Parliament endorsed Hun Sen's new government on Monday, taking
\nCambodia a long way toward regaining international legitimacy
\nlost when Hun Sen ousted his co-premier, Prince Norodom
\nRanariddh, in a coup last year.<\/p>\n
Cambodia's seat in the United Nations has since been vacant
\nand its entry - just weeks away at the time of the coup - into
\nASEAN suspended.<\/p>\n
ASEAN comprises Brunei, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar,
\nthe Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.<\/p>\n
ASEAN was deeply involved in efforts to return a semblance of
\ndemocracy to Cambodia and helped engineer the return of Ranariddh
\nfrom abroad to lead his royalist party in new elections in July.
\nHun Sen's party narrowly won.<\/p>\n
The opposition alleged fraud and violence and held up
\nformation of a new government until Ranariddh, citing
\ninternational pressure, agreed to a compromise earlier this month
\nthat made Hun Sen sole prime minister and the prince president of
\nthe National Assembly.<\/p>\n
In a policy speech to parliament on Monday, Hun Sen promised
\nthe new government would carry out much-needed reforms that have
\nbeen identified by foreign aid providers as crucial to Cambodia's
\ndevelopment.<\/p>\n
The prime minister reinforced his stance on Tuesday, saying
\nthat Cambodia's reentry into the international arena was the
\nfirst step in putting the struggling country back on track.<\/p>\n
\"Getting the ASEAN and UN seats, along with normalization of
\nrelations with international monetary institutions, like the IMF,
\nthe World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, are the most
\nurgent tasks,\" Hun Sen said.<\/p>\n
Several foreign governments are already hinting that Cambodia
\nwill see a return of aid that was sharply curtailed after
\nRanariddh's ouster.<\/p>\n
Japanese Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi, in a letter to King
\nNorodom Sihanouk released Tuesday, said that \"Japan will not
\nspare any effort to ... support Cambodia's national
\nreconstruction.\"<\/p>\n
Japan, Cambodia's single largest donor, was a key player in
\nbringing Ranariddh back for the election.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/hun-sen-pushes-cambodias-case-for-asean-entry-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}