Defendant says US policies triggered rise of Khmer Rouge
The former chief of the Khmer Rouge's most notorious prison said his group would not have risen to power in the 1970s if it weren't for the policies of former U.S. President Richard Nixon and his top diplomat, Henry Kissinger.
Kaing Guek Eav (pronounced Gang Geck EE-UU), better known as Duch, made the comments Monday before Cambodia's genocide tribunal during testimony charting his personal journey to revolution.
He also said that he realized early on that the Khmer Rouge would end up as a disaster for Cambodia.
Duch's remarks on U.S. influence in the region were part of his account of the years before the Khmer Rouge's 1975-79 regime. They echoed U.S. critics such as Noam Chomsky, who charged that Washington's policies ensnared Cambodia in the Vietnam War, destabilizing the country to the point that the Khmer Rouge could take over.
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Kaing Guek Eav (pronounced Gang Geck EE-UU), better known as Duch, made the comments Monday before Cambodia's genocide tribunal during testimony charting his personal journey to revolution.
He also said that he realized early on that the Khmer Rouge would end up as a disaster for Cambodia.
Duch's remarks on U.S. influence in the region were part of his account of the years before the Khmer Rouge's 1975-79 regime. They echoed U.S. critics such as Noam Chomsky, who charged that Washington's policies ensnared Cambodia in the Vietnam War, destabilizing the country to the point that the Khmer Rouge could take over.