Continued from here

Cambodia's also not into playing ball over military aid.

"We need assistance without strings attached. If it had strings attached, we would not accept it," Chum Sambath, undersecretary of state for Cambodian Ministry of Defense, was quoted as saying.

Does the US dole out funds without strings?

Both the Swiss and the South Koreans have reached airline deals with Cambodia, so more flights will be coming in.

Vietnam and Cambodia have taken measures to increase two-way trade by twenty-seven percent per year over the next three years.

Vietnam is the third largest importer of Cambodian goods, just behind the US and the EU. It is the fourth largest exporter to Cambodia, behind Thailand, China and Hong Kong, which for some reason is still considered separately.

For a concise and interesting recap of the Khmer Rouge trials, this story does a good job of putting it together.

The last paragraph rather sums up the whole fiasco for me:

However, political analysts, some U.N. staff and even some judges privately say that if no agreement is reached, there is a danger that the United Nations might abandon the effort entirely.

thisdraws attention to the continuing tragedy that is unexploded ordinance that is imbedded in Cambodian soil.

"I don't think I can find another better job than to be a scrap metal collector," said father of four Chuk Sok Khoy, 28.

Without any safety measures or protective gear, he asks a spirit to safeguard him each morning before he goes scavenging.

One day about three years ago, he thought his lucky day had arrived when his detector emitted a particularly strong signal.

"I thought I found a huge treasure. But after I dug it up, I saw a very big B-52 bomb," he said. Disappointed, he walked away from the find.

Having turned the tide in HIV transmission ... an accomplishment I find amazing and inspiring ... Cambodia is now looking to improve the quality of life for HIV/AIDS patients.

The HIV/AIDS prevalence rate among the Cambodian adults has dropped to the current 1.9 percent from three percent in 1997 and the people living with HIV/AIDS also decreased from 179,000 in 1998 to the current 135,100, including 123,100 adults and 12,000 children, it said.

If they can do this there, they can do anything.

And, that's another week.

Have a great weekend, and Happy March!