US Senate Passed Resolution Commemorating 1991 Cambodia Paris Peace Agreements

Washington D.C., — May 12, 2022 — the Senate unanimously passes S. 427 resolution to commemorate 1991 Cambodia Paris Peace Agreement and call on the Cambodian government to fulfill the democratic promises in conjunction with Prime Minister Hun Sen’s participation in the ASEAN Leaders Summit at the White House.

The Agreements, signed by 19 countries on October 23, 1991, laid the foundation for a peaceful, prosperous, democratic, and sovereign Cambodia after the Vietnam’s invasion from 1979 until the Paris Peace Accords that gave Cambodia peace, territorial integrity – a commitment that the Hun Sen’s government has continuously to unfilled because his government was installed by Vietnam after the invasion of Cambodia.

“Yesterday, the Senate sent an unmistakable message to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen: his government must live up to the democratic promise of the Paris Peace Agreements, not turn back the clock on peace,” said Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), Chairman of the East Asia Subcommittee on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “Hun Sen and the Cambodian People’s Party have failed to meet the promise of the Paris Peace Agreements and the Cambodian Constitution which provide the foundation for free and fair elections, human rights, and a commitment to neutrality. Congress must also pass the Cambodia Democracy and Human Rights Act, which I introduced with Senator Rubio, to make it clear that the United States, is unshakably committed to the people of Cambodia and their constitutional right to democracy.”

Along with Senator Mitt Romney (R-Utah), a Ranking Member of the East Asia Subcommittee, whose said “The Paris Peace Accords marked the end of decades of violent conflict in Cambodia and set up a framework which would establish an independent Cambodia. As we mark the anniversary of the accords, we urge the Cambodian government to uphold democratic values laid out in that agreement and defend their sovereignty in the region.”

Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J) said, “Today we honor the values enshrined in the Peace Agreements with a call to our international partners to reaffirm their support for the defense of fundamental freedoms in Cambodia, and urge Prime Minister Hun Sen to halt his authoritarian overreach and oppression of his own people. Three decades later, Cambodians’ future cannot be jeopardized further by attempts to deny fair, multiparty elections, freedom of speech, and other basic rights.”

“The Cambodian government continues to violate its citizens’ internationally recognized human rights and allow the Chinese military to establish a presence inside Cambodia despite commitments it made in the Paris Peace Agreements 30 years ago,” said Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “I’m glad the Senate came together today to urge the government of Cambodia to fulfill its commitments to democracy, human rights, and neutrality.”

Senators Markey, Romney, Menendez and Risch introduced this resolution last October, on the 30-year anniversary of the Agreements. The resolution notes that the promise of the Paris Peace Agreements remains unfulfilled due to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen’s violations of Cambodia’s Constitution and effective one-party rule since 1993.

Last year, Senators Markey, Marco Rubio (R-Fl.), and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) introduced the Cambodia Democracy and Human Rights Act, which would impose targeted sanctions on those senior officials of Cambodia’s government, military, or security forces that the President has determined has undermined democracy in Cambodia, engaged in significant corruption, or committed related human rights violations.