Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has implied that the United States should withdraw American Peace Corps volunteers amid escalating tensions over accusations that Americans in the Southeast Asian country colluded with an opposition leader against the government.
Earlier, the US embassy in Phnom Penh issued a travel warning that urged citizens to show caution amid “anti-American rhetoric by officials.”
“Are you scaring Cambodians?” Hun Sen said on Friday in an address to garment workers at factories that export much of their production to the US.
“Are you prepared to invade Cambodia and that’s why you told Americans to be careful? It’s good if you pull out the Peace Corps,” he added.
The embassy was on Friday swearing in tens of new volunteers from the Peace Corps, a program run by the US government to send Americans abroad to help with local projects.
Hun Sen also said that he had ordered an investigation into whether any Americans had been involved with opposition leader Kem Sokha.
On September 3, police arrested Sokha for secretly planning against the government with the backing of the US. The government said in a statement that it had a video clip and other evidence pointing to a secret plan with foreigners to harm the Kingdom of Cambodia, which it said amounted to treason.
His party denied the allegations and said the charges were politically motivated. The US also dismissed the accusations of collusion with Sokha and called for his release.
In January, Hun Sen annulled military exercises with the US that had been slated to take place this summer for the eighth consecutive year.
According to the US embassy, more than 500 Peace Corps volunteers have served and worked in Cambodia since 2006, providing English teaching and teacher training as well as community health education.
