Cambodia to host army exercise

Monday, 13 December 2010
By Sen David

Phnom Penh Post

Photo by: Heng Chivoan
Members of Cambodia’s National Counter-terrorism Special Forces take part in the United States-sponsored Angkor Sentinel joint military exercises in July of this year.

Cambodia will host another round of United States-backed multinational military exercises next year as part of a global initiative designed to boost countries’ peacekeeping capacity, officials from both countries said.

US embassy spokesman Mark Wenig said the event – called Angkor Sentinel 2011 – had been scheduled for May and would be held at the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces’ Peacekeeping Training Centre in Kampong Speu province.

“We are continuing to work with the RCAF to build [peace keeping operations] capacity. Similar to Angkor Sentinel 10, we are looking at an Angkor Sentinel 11 – also based on peacekeeping capacity development,” he said.

The event follows on from the Angkor Sentinel 2010, a two-week-long exercise which the country hosted in July. About 1,000 troops from 26 nations participated in the programme, which was described by Prime Minister Hun Sen as a symbol of the strong military ties between the US and Cambodia....read the full story in tomorrow’s Phnom Penh Post or see the updated story online from 3PM UTC/GMT +7 hours.