Phnom Penh (FN), Feb. 18 - Cambodian government spokesman Phay Siphan stated Monday that the Paris Peace Accord, an agreement aimed at ending war and restoring peace in Cambodia, did not authorize the US or any other countries to interfere in internal affairs of Cambodia.

The statement was made to counter US Embassy Phnom Penh spokesman Arend Zwartjes’s claim that the Embassy’s statement on Kem Sokha was made on the ground that the US was a signatory state of the Paris Peace Accord signed on 23 October 1993 and that the US is responsible for examining Cambodia’s democracy and human rights process.

Cambodian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation was surprised to learn that the US Embassy in Phnom Penh had posted on its official Facebook page on 15 February 2019 a partial comment concerning the legal case of Kem Sokha with an obvious intention to mislead the public opinion.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation expresses grave concern over such a conduct and categorizes the move as undiplomatic and disrespectful for the sovereignty of Cambodia,” according to the statement dated late Saturday.

“The Ministry is compelled to remind the US Embassy in Phnom Penh to refer to Article 41 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961, which particularly requires the Mission to respect the laws and regulations, and not to interfere in the internal affairs of Cambodia,” the statement continued.

“The Kingdom of Cambodia always respects the sovereignty of other nations and has not commented on any disgraceful scandal of any senior officials and politicians of any country. The step taken by the US Embassy in this biased direction runs counter to the ongoing efforts of the two nations in improving the bilateral relationship for shared interest of the two countries and peoples,” the ministry wrote.

“While urging the US Embassy in Phnom Penh to immediately discontinue this politically motivated and undiplomatic conduct, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation wishes to reaffirm Cambodia’s commitment to upholding the rule of law and the maintenance of peace, stability and public order, which the Cambodian people are currently enjoying,” the statement underlined.
=FRESH NEWS