Respected Japanese business journal, Nikkei Asian Review , in an opinion piece last week said that removing tariff-free access will more likely to backfire, pushing Cambodia away from Europe and toward China. “In taking the drastic step of suspending Cambodia’s tariff-free access to EU markets last week, the European Commission hoped it would incentivize Phnom Penh to repair human rights violations and improve its governance.

 

“EU foreign policy seeks to be simultaneously normative and strategic. Normative means it wants to export its purported norms, human rights and good governance, as a foreign policy priority. But as the recent palm oil spat demonstrated, such moralistic foreign policy negatively affects Europe’s strategic goals: Malaysia and Indonesia successfully lobbied against granting the EU strategic partnership status with ASEAN in retaliation for EU restrictions on palm oil,” opinion stated.

 

Similar ramifications await the EU with EBA removal. Hun Sen will certainly join the ranks of EU skeptics and may block Brussels’ attempts to close ranks with ASEAN. In addition, while EBA seeks to incentivise governments to follow human rights and good governance best practices, everyone is aware that removing it will strike at the very people EBA intends to lift out of poverty.

 

read more https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50691582/japanese-business-journal-says-punishing-cambodia-is-going-to-backfire-on-eu

Cambodia is already away from Europe and most western countries....it's now "owned" by the Chinese.

The country should be blacklisted and all trade agreements should be nullified.

Having business interests in the country, as likely Japan has, is no excuse. If they couldn't see what was happening there, then som nom na!

I don't see how much more Cambodia could turn towards China without actually becomming a province of China.

It’s too late Japan-where have the authors been ????

2 hours ago, Proboscis said:

I don't see how much more Cambodia could turn towards China without actually becomming a province of China.

N

 

2 hours ago, Proboscis said:

I don't see how much more Cambodia could turn towards China without actually becomming a province of China.

It is all about money...that Hun Sen got for selling part of Cambodia. Sihanoukville is a good exemple. 

The arrogance of the West is beyond me.

 

The export of incompatible moral standards is hypocritical at best.

6 hours ago, ChrisY1 said:

Cambodia is already away from Europe and most western countries....it's now "owned" by the Chinese.

The country should be blacklisted and all trade agreements should be nullified.

Having business interests in the country, as likely Japan has, is no excuse. If they couldn't see what was happening there, then som nom na!

this;

owned, lock,stock and barrel..
with china they dont need, (or give a sh$t about) anyone else