Opinion!

August 12, 2020 European Union withdrew 20 percent of duty-free goods from Cambodia. According to the statement of the ministry of commerce of Cambodia, The Kingdom expected to sign a Free Trade Agreement with the People's Republic of China with the hope to export Cambodia's agricultural products to sell in China's market.

According to the article written by David Hutt released on August 4, 2020, Asia Times claimed that “In 2018, Cambodia exported just over US$1.3 billion worth of goods to China, while its imports from China were worth $6.1 billion. By comparison, Cambodia’s exports to the US and EU were worth $3.8 billion and $6 billion respectively that year, with Cambodia enjoying a trade surplus with both”.

According to the data above, the survival of Cambodia’s economy mainly depends on the United State of America and European Union, although China provided aid and funding to the Government of Cambodia on social infrastructure development.

In reality of social development and political stability, Cambodia needs to have good relations with all countries in the world not only with the US, EU, and China but all other countries.

There are many international observers who recommended Cambodian Government to balance its foreign policy with all countries in the world, and informed the government to not bias to China or the US.

In international politics, good friends or honesty of each nation will be based on benefits or national interests that emerge in each relationship. We found that the US used two-way relations with Taiwan, dishonest relations with South Vietnam, broke off relations with Turkey, and abandoned Cambodia during the Lon Nol Regime in 1970-1975.

People ‘s republic of China who is renowned as the main back of Cambodia for all the time used to abandon Cambodia in 1979 when Vietnam invaded Khmer Regime due to its benefits and challenges in society. China is also well-known as the country that is deeply involved in the Khmer Regime which killed almost two million Cambodian innocent people.

According to the history of Cambodia, particularly with the US and China, Cambodia has gone through challenges and development due to the relations with both countries already. Should Cambodia cut off relations with any country? The answer must be No, but Cambodia needs to have a very careful relationship and needs to ensure the balancing among the powerful countries.

Although China is a communist country, China is a country that can supply internal requirements for their own citizens, in terms of agriculture and foods. China still imports agricultural products from other countries but its production capacity is very strong in almost all fields.

Look at Cambodia, although this country is known as an agricultural country but many of its food supply and production are mainly imported from neighboring countries such as Thailand, Vietnam, China and others. The production capacity of Cambodia is still very low, farmers always face challenges on lacking markets to sell their agricultural products at all seasons of their harvesting time.

Cambodia-China Free Trade Agreement (CCFTA) is one of the most important development for Cambodia, the world should be proud of, but development capacity and support for local producers are the main roots that Cambodian Government needs to pay more attention, otherwise only big businesses that will be survived during the trade exchange between Cambodia and China.

Cambodia needs to strengthen many other fields such as social infrastructure development, national or local production capacity, skillful workers, and effective officials at the local level since capacities of many local officials is limited and some of them, particularly commune chiefs and clerks enjoying working from home even not during the Covid 19 time.

( Seun Sam is the Director of Public Relations of Royal Academy of Cambodia, Phnom Penh, Cambodia. He could be reached through email: [email protected] ).

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RAC Media