KANDAL: Prime Minister has stated that sanctions imposed on Cambodian officials by the United States in the past are merely a political sign and that even 500 more will have no effect on Cambodia.

Speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony for the new international airport in Kandal Steung district, Kandal province, Prime Minister Hun Sen said he was grateful to the international community for not accepting Cambodian citizens' money into their banks, as the refusal caused Cambodians to turn over the money to invest in the country, making progress like now. He said that the law on democracy that the United States has put in place has no effect.

The Prime Minister says, “The issue of sanctions abroad, even if it is declared 500 times, 500 lives, this is only a political sign, even if it is imposed on me […] You approve yourself, this threat, that threat! Threaten them, threaten their lives. I do not care about democratic laws.”

Currently, there are three senior government officials who have been sanctioned by the United States to freeze their assets in the United States, including Bodyguard Commander Hing Bun Heang, Navy Commander Tea Vinh, and Director General of the General Department of Technical Equipment Ministry of National Defense Chao Phirun.

On 3 December, the United States announced that it would compile a list of those whom the United States considers human rights abusers, corrupt and destructive of democracy through its democratic law, which will be announced next week. However, international relations analysts say the United States is acting as a world power and is using its power to violate the sovereignty of an independent state.

^{PHOTO: SARY}