Phnom Penh (FN), Sep. 20 – Samdech Techo Hun Sen, President of the Cambodian People's Party (CPP) and Prime Minister Hun Manet and senior leaders announced Cambodia's withdrawal from the Cambodia-Laos-Viet Nam Development Triangle Area (CLV-DTA), effective 20 September 2024.

Samdech Techo Hun Sen wrote on his Facebook page on Friday night (Sep. 20):

Dear compatriots!

The Cambodia-Laos-Viet Nam Development Triangle (CLV-DTA) has been implemented for 25 years and has also built many achievements for the development of Kratie, Stung Treng, Mondulkiri and Ratanakkiri provinces.

But in the past, extremists have used this as a political weapon to slander and attack the government by constantly lying to the people, and making people confused. For instance, allegations that the government ceded the territory of the four northeastern provinces to foreign countries, etc. They recently used this to incite and call on the people to participate in the implementation of the August 18 plan in an attempt to destabilize the society.

The Royal Government has taken measures, including public awareness campaigns to educate citizens so that the people can better understand the CLV-DTA cooperation and the political tactics of the extremists, as well as effective administrative and legal measures, and has made the "August 18 Plan" of the extremists a complete failure, while peace and social stability remain firmly guaranteed.

Although the extremists’ August 18 plan has been completely dissolved, Hun Sen's way of working is to "not sit and stop the smoke, but to put out the fire completely."

Taking into account people’s concern on territory and the need to withdraw weapon out of the hands of extremists to prevent them from using CLV-DTA to further cheat people, I, as the Party President and Prime Minister Hun Manet and other leader decided that Cambodia completes our participation in the Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam Development Triangle Area (CLV-DTA) from September 20, 2024 onwards.

We continue to normally develop our territory under cooperation with ASEAN, with CLMV, with ACMECS with GMS and with other development partners across the globe.

Border Infrastructure Development Fund focusing on building border roads in which our people have participated will contribute to this development.

Extremists are likely to declare their victory over this demand; however, they will lose an important weapon used to attack the Royal Government. Moreover, the success of the Cambodian People’s Party stems from solving people's concerns and knowing how to remove weapons from the hands of the enemy.
=FRESH NEWS