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| Conventional Long Form: | Kingdom of Cambodia |
| Conventional Short Form: | Cambodia |
| Location: | Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, between Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos |
| Capital City: | Phnom Penh |
| Government Type: | Multiparty liberal democracy under a constitutional monarchy established in September 1993 |
| Population: | 12,491,501 |
| Area [sq.km]: | 181,040 (slightly smaller than Oklahoma) |
| Currency: | riel (KHR) |
| Languages: | Khmer (official) 95%, French, English |
| National Holiday: | Independence Day, 9 November (1953) |
| Background: | Following a five-year struggle, communist Khmer Rouge forces captured Phnom Penh in 1975 and ordered the evacuation of all cities and towns; over 1 million displaced people died from execution or enforced hardships. A 1978 Vietnamese invasion drove the Khmer Rouge into the countryside and touched off 13 years of fighting. UN-sponsored elections in 1993 helped restore some semblance of normalcy, as did the rapid diminishment of the Khmer Rouge in the mid-1990s. A coalition government, formed after national elections in 1998, brought renewed political stability and the surrender of remaining Khmer Rouge forces. |
