According to Tom Fawthrop, U.S. support for the Khmer Rouge guerrillas in the 1980s was “pivotal” to keeping the organization alive, and was in part motivated by revenge over the U.S. defeat during the Vietnam War.
Why did the US support the Khmer Rouge government in Cambodia when it was threatened by Vietnam?
In which nation did the U.S. support a dictatorship that was fighting communism? … The U.S. wanted Iraq to overthrow Iran’s revolutionary government. Why did the U.S. support the Khmer Rouge government in Cambodia when it was threatened by Vietnam? The government Vietnam supported in Cambodia was communist.
How did Khmer Rouge gain support?
Khmer Rouge fortunes were also helped by Vietnamese and Chinese aid, Sihanouk’s call to arms, and resentment of the widespread corruption that infected Lon Nol’s government and army.
Is Cambodia a US ally?
Over the last several decades of the 20th century, the United States and Cambodia established, broke off, and reestablished relations as a result of armed conflict and government changes in Cambodia. Full diplomatic relations were established after the freely elected Royal Government of Cambodia was formed in 1993.
Why did China back the Khmer Rouge?
China has used Cambodia as a counterweight to the dominating influence of Vietnam. In the mid-20th century, Communist China supported the Maoist Khmer Rouge against Lon Nol’s regime during the Cambodian Civil War and then its takeover of Cambodia in 1975.
What was Pol Pot’s goal?
Pol Pot transformed Cambodia into a one-party state called Democratic Kampuchea. Seeking to create an agrarian socialist society that he believed would evolve into a communist society, Pol Pot’s government forcibly relocated the urban population to the countryside to work on collective farms.
Who did the Khmer Rouge target?
Because the Khmer Rouge placed a heavy emphasis on the rural peasant population, anyone considered an intellectual was targeted for special treatment. This meant teachers, lawyers, doctors, and clergy were the targets of the regime. Even people wearing glasses were the target of Pol Pot’s reign of terror.
What was the goal of the Khmer Rouge?
In 1976, the Khmer Rouge established the state of Democratic Kampuchea. The party’s aim was to establish a classless communist state based on a rural agrarian economy and a complete rejection of the free market and capitalism.