Japan Does Not Link Khmer Rouge Trial to Its Assistance to CambodiaThe Japanese government does not link its assistance to the Cambodian process of Khmer Rouge trial, Japanese Ambassador to Cambodia Gotaro Ogawa told reporters Wednesday.Ogawa gave the remark at the meeting with the Club of Cambodian Journalists (CCJ) on the aid policy of Japanese government towards Cambodia. Japan has been the largest donor country to Cambodia since 1991, and still plays its major role in the rehabilitation and development in the country, the ambassador said. In a rare occasion meeting with Cambodian press, he said that Japan will continue to help Cambodia in various forms of assistance, including official development assistance (ODA) and grant aid as well as credit loans to this country. Ogawa, however, clarified that Japan is eager to help Cambodia after discovering this country has just gained complete peace and the Cambodian government as well as its people are eager to restore and develop their own nation after facing almost three decades of civil strife. It remains unclear how much aid pledge that Japan will promise at the Consultative Group meeting in Tokyo in June this year, Ogawa said. Cambodia receives some 450 million U. S. dollars from foreign donors annually. |
| People's Daily Online --- http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/ |