2 ms·

IIRC from [0] US politicians long regarded the horror stories out of Cambodia as exaggerated tales at best, enemy propaganda at worst, since the Cambodian regim

IIRC from [0] US politicians long regarded the horror stories out of Cambodia as exaggerated tales at best, enemy propaganda at worst, since the Cambodian regime was opposed to the newly formed Vietnamese government. They couldn't politically support the cause of their former enemy, so Cambodians suffered for longer, until Vietnam got bold enough to invade and liberate them (Edit: I don't know whether the aim was to liberate, the aim probably was to invade but it resulted in liberation). But yeah, I don't remember any material support either. But the political support was deciding in keeping the madmen going in the country. [0] "A Problem from Hell" by Samantha Power

nickff 5y ago
Again according to Wikipedia, the Khmer Rouge were initially supported by the North Vietnamese and Chinese, only turning against the former later on. The USA appears to have opposed the Khmer Rouge until they were largely a spent force. Given the articles on the subject, and my understanding of the political situation at the time, I find it hard to believe that the USA abetted any Khmer Rouge activity. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambodian_Civil_War https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambodian_Civil_War
- wnkrshm 5y ago
  The article you cited ends with the victory of the Khmer Rouge in 1975. It deals with the events before the Khmer Rouge rule of terror, which lasted until 1979. In terms of support, it seems you can even quote Kissinger on it: "You should tell the Cambodians that we will be friends with them. They are murderous thugs but we won't let that stand in our way." "The Thais and the Chinese did not want a Vietnamese-dominated Indochina. We didn't want the Vietnamese to dominate. I don't believe we did anything for Pol Pot. But I suspect we closed our eyes when some others did something for Pol Pot." (Edit, others meaning China in the context) [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegations_of_United_States_support_for_the_Khmer_Rouge#U.S._diplomatic_support https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegations_of_United_States_s...

nickff 5y ago

Again according to Wikipedia, the Khmer Rouge were initially supported by the North Vietnamese and Chinese, only turning against the former later on. The USA appears to have opposed the Khmer Rouge until they were largely a spent force. Given the articles on the subject, and my understanding of the political situation at the time, I find it hard to believe that the USA abetted any Khmer Rouge activity. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambodian_Civil_War https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambodian_Civil_War

wnkrshm 5y ago
The article you cited ends with the victory of the Khmer Rouge in 1975. It deals with the events before the Khmer Rouge rule of terror, which lasted until 1979. In terms of support, it seems you can even quote Kissinger on it: "You should tell the Cambodians that we will be friends with them. They are murderous thugs but we won't let that stand in our way." "The Thais and the Chinese did not want a Vietnamese-dominated Indochina. We didn't want the Vietnamese to dominate. I don't believe we did anything for Pol Pot. But I suspect we closed our eyes when some others did something for Pol Pot." (Edit, others meaning China in the context) [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegations_of_United_States_support_for_the_Khmer_Rouge#U.S._diplomatic_support https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegations_of_United_States_s...