PHNOM PENH (Cambodia Herald) - The United States wants to resolve bilateral debt issues with Cambodia to help it increase its access to international capital markets, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said.
Speaking at a news conference Thursday, Clinton said she was "personally" committed to resolving Cambodia's outstanding debt to the United States, which dates back to the 1970s.
"Under international law, governments are responsible for the obligations of their predecessors even though that may seem unfair in many instances," she said in response to a question from a Rasmei Kampuchea reporter.
"So what we want to do is work with the Cambodian government to try to resolve these long-standing issues, in a way that is fair, to help the Cambodian government enhance its credit worthiness, increase its access to international capital markets.
"We think it will be in Cambodia’s interest to ... not be dependent on any one source of funding, but be able to bargain and work toward real creditworthiness," Clinton said.
"I’m hoping we will make progress in trying to resolve this issue. It’s something I personally am committed to doing."
