Cambodia           Introduction        

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.

Cambodia           Geography  

Location:         Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, between Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos

Geographic coordinates:        13 00 N, 105 00 E

Map references:         Southeast Asia

Area: total:  181,040 sq km

land:  176,520 sq km

water:  4,520 sq km

Area - comparative:        slightly smaller than Oklahoma

Land boundaries:         total:  2,572 km

border countries:  Laos 541 km, Thailand 803 km, Vietnam 1,228 km

Coastline:         443 km