Editing History of Cambodia (section)

==Administration of Sihanouk (1953–70)==

[[File:Norodom Sihanouk Coronation Regalia 1941.png|thumb|right|Coronation of [[Norodom Sihanouk]] in 1941]]
[[File:Hartini Sukarno with Norodom Sihanouk and wife, Bung Karno Penjambung Lidah Rakjat 253.jpg|thumb|left|Norodom Sihanouk and his wife in Indonesia, 1964]]
Sihanouk's "royal crusade for independence" resulted in grudging French acquiescence to his demands for a transfer of sovereignty. A partial agreement was struck in October 1953. Sihanouk then declared that independence had been achieved and returned in triumph to [[Phnom Penh]]. As a result of the [[1954 Geneva Conference]] on Indochina, Cambodia was able to bring about the withdrawal of the [[Viet Minh]] troops from its territory and to withstand any residual impingement upon its sovereignty by external powers.

Neutrality was the central element of Cambodian foreign policy during the 1950s and 1960s. By the mid-1960s, parts of Cambodia's eastern provinces were serving as bases for North Vietnamese Army and [[Viet Cong|National Liberation Front]] (NVA/NLF) forces operating against South Vietnam, and the port of [[Sihanoukville (city)|Sihanoukville]] was being used to supply them. As NVA/VC activity grew, the United States and [[South Vietnam]] became concerned, and in 1969, the United States began a 14-month-long series of bombing raids targeted at NVA/VC elements, contributing to destabilisation. The bombing campaign took place no further than ten, and later {{convert|20|mi|km|spell=in}} inside the Cambodian border, areas where the Cambodian population had been evicted by the NVA.<ref>Davidson, Phillip B. ''Vietnam at War: The History 1946–1975''. 1988. P. 593</ref> <!--Cite supports entire paragraph--> Prince Sihanouk, fearing that the conflict between communist North Vietnam and South Vietnam might spill over to Cambodia, publicly opposed the idea of a bombing campaign by the United States along the Vietnam–Cambodia border and inside Cambodian territory. However, [[Peter Rodman]] claimed, "Prince Sihanouk complained bitterly to us about these North Vietnamese bases in his country and invited us to attack them". In December 1967 ''Washington Post'' journalist Stanley Karnow was told by Sihanouk that if the US wanted to bomb the Vietnamese communist sanctuaries, he would not object, unless Cambodians were killed.<ref>''The Washington Post'', 29 December 1967</ref> The same message was conveyed to US President Johnson's emissary [[Chester Bowles]] in January 1968.<ref>Stephen J. Morris ''Why Vietnam Invaded Cambodia'' (Stanford University Press. 1999). p. 44</ref> So the US had no real motivation to overthrow Sihanouk. However, Prince Sihanouk wanted Cambodia to stay out of the North Vietnam–South Vietnam conflict and was very critical of the United States government and its allies (the South Vietnamese government). Prince Sihanouk, facing internal struggles of his own, due to the rise of the Khmer Rouge, did not want Cambodia to be involved in the conflict. Sihanouk wanted the United States and its allies (South Vietnam) to keep the war away from the Cambodian border. Sihanouk did not allow the United States to use Cambodian air space and airports for military purposes. This upset the United States greatly and contributed to their view of Prince Sihanouk as a North Vietnamese sympathiser and a thorn in the side of the United States.<ref>{{worldhistory|quote=P. 1012|section=4084}}</ref> However, declassified documents indicate that as late as March 1970 the Nixon administration was hoping to garner "friendly relations" with Sihanouk.

Throughout the 1960s, domestic Cambodian politics became polarised. Opposition to the government grew within the middle class and leftists including Paris-educated leaders like [[Son Sen]], [[Ieng Sary]], and Saloth Sar (later known as [[Pol Pot]]), who led an [[insurgency]] under the clandestine Communist Party of Kampuchea (CPK). Sihanouk called these insurgents the [[Khmer Rouge]], literally the "Red Khmer". But the 1966 national assembly elections showed a significant swing to the right, and General [[Lon Nol]] formed a new government, which lasted until 1967. During 1968 and 1969, the insurgency worsened. However, members of the government and army, who resented Sihanouk's ruling style as well as his tilt away from the United States, did have a motivation to overthrow him.