Editing Norodom Sihanouk (section)

===Uneasy alliance===
On 23 March 1970, Sihanouk announced the formation of his resistance movement, the [[National United Front of Kampuchea]] (FUNK). He encouraged the Cambodian populace to join him and fight against Lon Nol's new military government. Sihanouk was revered by the Khmer peasantry as a [[Devaraja|god-like figure]], and his endorsement of the Khmer Rouge had immediate effects.{{sfnp|Langguth|2000|p=558}} The royal family was so revered that Lon Nol after the coup went to the royal palace, knelt at the feet of the queen mother and begged her forgiveness for deposing her son.{{sfnp|Langguth|2000|p=558}}

Khmer Rouge soldiers broadcast Sihanouk's message in the Cambodian countryside, which roused demonstrations rooting for his cause that were brutally suppressed by Lon Nol's troops.{{sfnp|Osborne|1994|p=219}} Sometime later, on 5 May 1970, Sihanouk announced the formation of a government-in-exile known as the Royal Government of the National Union of Kampuchea ([[GRUNK]]), leading Communist countries including China, North Vietnam, and North Korea to break relations with the Lon Nol regime.{{sfnp|Jeldres|2005|p=137}} In Phnom Penh, a military trial convened on 2 July 1970, whereby Sihanouk was charged with both treason and corruption in his capacity as Head of State. After a three-day trial, the judges ruled Sihanouk guilty of both charges and sentenced to him to death in absentia on 5 July 1970.{{sfnp|Sihanouk|1973|p=271}}

[[File:Prince Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia at the United Nations (1972).png|thumb|Sihanouk at the [[United Nations]] (1972)]]
Between 1970 and 1975, Sihanouk took up residence in state guesthouses at Beijing and [[Pyongyang]], courtesy of the Chinese and North Korean governments, respectively.{{sfnp|Marlay|Neher|1999|p=167}} In February 1973, Sihanouk traveled to [[Hanoi]], where he started on a long journey with Khieu Samphan and other Khmer Rouge leaders. The convoy proceeded along the [[Ho Chi Minh trail]] and reached the Cambodian border at [[Stung Treng province]] the following month. From there, they traveled across the [[Provinces of Cambodia|provinces]] of Stung Treng, [[Preah Vihear province|Preah Vihear]], and [[Siem Reap province|Siem Reap]]. Throughout this entire leg of the journey, Sihanouk faced constant bombardment from American planes participating in [[Operation Freedom Deal]].{{sfnp|Jeldres|2005|p=178}} At Siem Reap, Sihanouk visited the temples of [[Angkor Wat]], [[Banteay Srei]], and [[Bayon]].{{sfnp|Jeldres|2005|p=183}} In August 1973, [[Sisowath Sirik Matak]] wrote an open letter calling on Sihanouk to bring the [[Cambodian Civil War]] to an end and suggesting the possibility of his return to the country. When the letter reached Sihanouk, he angrily rejected Sirik Matak's entreaties.{{sfnp|Osborne|1994|p=226}}

After the [[Khmer Republic]] [[Cambodian Civil War#Fall of Phnom Penh|fell]] to the [[Khmer Rouge]] on 17 April 1975, a new regime under its charge, [[Democratic Kampuchea]], was formed. Sihanouk was appointed as its Head of State, a ceremonial position.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1975/04/26/archives/cambodians-designate-sihanouk-as-chief-for-life.html|title=Cambodians Designate Sihanouk as Chief for Life|work=[[The New York Times]]|agency=[[United Press International|UPI]]|date=26 April 1975|access-date=16 July 2015}}</ref> In September 1975,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1975/09/10/archives/sihanouk-returns-to-a-big-welcome-in-phnom-penh.html|title=Sihanouk Returns to a Big Welcome in Phnom Penh|work=[[The New York Times]]|author-link= David A. Andelman |first = David A. | last = Andelman |date=10 September 1975|access-date=1 August 2023}}</ref>{{sfnp|Osborne|1994|p=229}} Sihanouk briefly returned to Cambodia to inter the ashes of his mother,{{sfnp|Marlay|Neher|1999|p=168}} before going abroad again to lobby for diplomatic recognition of Democratic Kampuchea.{{sfnp|Jeldres|2005|p=191}} He returned on 31 December 1975 and presided over a meeting to endorse the constitution of Democratic Kampuchea.{{sfnp|Osborne|1994|p=231}} In February 1976, Khieu Samphan took him on a tour across the Cambodian countryside. Sihanouk was shocked to see the use of [[forced labour]] and population displacement carried out by the Khmer Rouge government, known as the [[Communist Party of Kampuchea#The Angkar|Angkar]]. Following the tour, Sihanouk decided to resign as the Head of State.{{sfnp|Osborne|1994|p=232}} The Angkar initially rejected his resignation request, though they subsequently accepted it in mid-April 1976,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/04/05/archives/phnom-penh-says-sinanouk-resigns-reports-exchief-of-state-will-stay.html|title=Phnom Penh Says Sihanouk Resigns|work=[[The New York Times]]|agency=[[United Press International|UPI]]|date=5 April 1976|access-date=30 July 2023}}</ref> retroactively backdating it to 2 April 1976.{{sfnp|Osborne|1994|p=233}}