(Sihanoukville): Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet expressed his frustration with the opposition group that is lobbying the European Union (EU) to impose trade pressure on Cambodia, while the country is making efforts to negotiate tariff issues with the United States, speaking on Thursday (May 1) during his meeting with civil servants, staff, and workers of the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port.
The premier questioned whether it was appropriate or necessary for the opposition to appeal to the EU to apply pressure on Cambodia, which ultimately causes hardship for Cambodian citizens, including their own supporters.
Samdech Thipadei underscored, “I saw that some people yesterday were bragging about asking the EU to impose sanctions on the Cambodian government. At a time when we are facing trade and tariff challenges from the US, which are already affecting our people’s livelihoods, they still proudly boast about urging the EU to impose sanctions on Cambodia, just like the previous EBA withdrawal. Does that benefit our workers? No. Withdrawing the EBA and imposing additional economic pressure will impact logistics and force factory closures. Are they proud of that?”
In this regard, Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet described the actions of the overseas opposition as unhelpful to Cambodia. He urged the public to take note of these actions, which bring difficulties to the country and its people.
Premier Hun Manet added that tomorrow, Cambodia’s working group will continue tariff discussions with Jamieson Greer, the Chief Trade Representative of the US. If necessary, the team will fly to the US immediately.
On the occasion, Samdech Thipadei underlined that negotiating trade with the US is not easy. Despite the complexity and difficulty, the Royal Government continues to strive to protect the interests of the nation and its people.
Prime Minister Hun Manet also cited research data indicating that in 2024, the US had a trade deficit with over 100 countries, importing more than it exported. In contrast, China had a trade surplus with over 150 countries, exporting more than it imported.
On 3 April 2025, Donald Trump decided to impose reciprocal tariffs, setting a high tariff rate of approximately 49 per cent on imports from Cambodia as retaliation. Experts noted that this tariff increase was a result of the trade imbalance between Cambodia and the US. Cambodia exported over USD 9 billion worth of goods to the US out of a total trade volume of USD 10.5 billion, accounting for 97 per cent. Applying half of that percentage gives a 49 per cent tariff rate.
Recently, the US also raised tariffs on Cambodian solar panel products to 3,521 per cent.
Regarding the tariff issue, Prime Minister Hun Manet noted that the US has been losing heavily on import expenditures globally, as reflected by its trade deficits. As a result, the Trump administration announced the implementation of reciprocal tariffs on countries with which the US has significant trade deficits. Specifically, Cambodia, Laos, and Viet Nam are now subject to import tariffs of 49 per cent, 48 per cent, and 46 per cent respectively, due to trade deficits of 97 per cent, 95 per cent, and 90 per cent.
=FRESH NEWS
