Secretary of State and Spokesperson at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation H.E. Koy Kuong has asked for clarification from Ms. Katherine Viner, Editor-in-Chief of the Guardian concerning an online article titled: “Law firm founded by Cypriot President accused of hiding assets of Russian exile”, published on Oct. 3, 2021 and written by Luke Harding and Helena Smith.
“One paragraph of the article says: ‘In addition to Russian Oligarchs and Saudi potentials, the Cambodian Leader, Hun Sen, was discovered to have been among the thousands of non-Europeans who received a Cypriot passport.’ This is a grossly false and unacceptable claim,” wrote H.E. Koy Kuong to Ms. Katherine Viner.
According to the spokesperson, Samdech Techo Prime Minister Hun Sen’s attachment of his life to the life of the Cambodian people in all circumstances is without any doubt; and his patriotism is absolute. He is a proud and dignified Khmer national and a widely respected statesman who enjoys overwhelming support throughout the country. Therefore, it is absurd to even think that he would need to acquire citizenship or a passport from any foreign country.
“Samdech Techo Prime Minister Hun Sen, from his tender age of 18, resolved to sacrifice his flesh and blood to fight against imperialism, and subsequently to liberate Cambodia from the killing field of the Khmer Rouge genocidal regime. He has devoted his life to healing our nation from the wounds of decades long internal conflict and to ensuring that Cambodia remains a unified nation. Now that Cambodia is enjoying the fruits of the struggle that led to the success of his Win-Win policy where people throughout the country thrive in peace, stability and security, it is unimaginable that there could be such story of him on the list of people receiving a foreign passport,” he said.
“In this connection, I would highly appreciate it if you could verify the authenticity of the information in the above article and rectify this wrong claim. This is very important to uphold not only the dignity and honour of our national leader, but also the trust for the professionalism and integrity of The Guardian.
After getting many reactions from the Cambodian side, The Guardian, a news agency based in the United Kingdom, on Oct. 6 amended its article clarifying that Samdech Techo Prime Minister did not receive a Cypriot passport, but accusing “[…] some members of the Cambodian leader Hun Sen’s inner circle were discovered to have been among the thousands of non-Europeans who received a Cypriot passport.”
Source: Agency Kampuchea Press
