KUALA LUMPUR: On May 31, Malaysia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a statement saying that they were not aware of Sam Rainsy’s presence in the country, but that the former Chief Opposition Member had left the country that morning. It further noted that no public program had taken place during his time in Malaysia.

Rainsy, who holds a French and Khmer passport, was seen alongside his wife and ex-lawmaker Men Sothavarin greeting a group of opposition supporters at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport on May 29, following his four-day trip in Australia.

The Phnom Penh Municipal Court convicted Rainsy of treason last October in absentia. He was then sentenced to life imprisonment for ceding four Cambodian provinces to Vietnam’s Montagnard.

Speaking at a ribbon cutting ceremony for a new bridge in Russey Keo yesterday, Prime Minister Hun Sen warned that if Rainsy tried to re-enter Cambodia, he would be “welcomed” with a BM-21 rocket launcher, saying “Do not think of passing through Thailand to enter Cambodia. In this case, I should welcome them with BM-21 Grad.”