Test of Cambodian Forces Begins as Hanoi’s Troops Withdraw

As Vietnam completes the final stages of its withdrawal from Cambodia, this region along the border with Thailand presents two contrasting faces of the warfare that continues to embroil this nation of 5 million people.

On one side is the pullback--Vietnamese soldiers in wide-brimmed pith helmets and light-green uniforms in an enormous convoy slowly moving eastward en route home.

At a farewell ceremony in this provincial capital, Cambodian Defense Minister Tie Banh pinned medals on the chests of Vietnamese commanders, telling them of the “deep gratitude” of the Cambodian people for Vietnam’s invasion of the country in December, 1978.

Ung Samy, provincial chief of the ruling Kampuchea Party, waxed sentimental under a broiling mid-morning sun: “They gave a great sacrifice in the cause of saving Cambodia,” he said.

Schoolchildren in baggy white shirts and blue bandannas, given the day off and lining the parade route, waved farewell to the Vietnamese with what seemed like genuine fondness. Several girls jumped on the running boards of departing trucks to plant farewell kisses on Vietnamese cheeks.

But Cambodian leaders freely acknowledge that the Vietnamese departure only ended a chapter in Cambodia’s two decades of conflict. As Tie Binh remarked here, Cambodian forces “as good as Vietnam’s in both quality and quantity” are being moved in to replace the departing Vietnamese.

Just 40 miles to the southwest is the gem-mining center of Pailin, focus of heavy fighting between Cambodian government forces and Communist Khmer Rouge rebels since the end of July.

Lt. Gen. Ke Kim Yan, an assistant defense minister, told reporters in Phnom Penh that as many as 2,000 rounds of artillery were falling daily on Pailin and four military bases that overlook the town from heights 10 to 15 miles away.

Khmer Rouge radio said the heights were captured recently in heavy fighting, and the Cambodian regime, evidently feeling its honor was at stake, sent a British journalist to the area late last week to disprove the Khmer Rouge claims.

“We will not abandon Pailin,” Gen. Ke Kim Yan said. “If they get Pailin, they will not only gain a military advantage but also an economic advantage because of the gems. There are enough rubies there to help feed an army.”

Pailin is considered particularly significant now because the Vietnamese, whose withdrawal is scheduled for completion Tuesday, played a significant defensive role there before their pullback.

Although the Vietnamese had steadily disengaged since troop withdrawals began in 1983, they continued to back up Cambodian infantry along the border with heavy, long-range guns such as 130-millimeter howitzers and 155-millimeter cannons, according to diplomats in Phnom Penh.

The mountainous terrain around Pailin inhibits troop movements, and so far the fighting there seems to have been mainly artillery duels, with ground fighting limited to guerrilla-style forays.

But Pailin is quickly becoming a symbol in the same way that Jalalabad did in Afghanistan after the Soviet troop withdrawal last February. If the government can hold at Pailin, as the Afghans did against moujahedeen rebels in Afghanistan, its chances for survival would appear greatly enhanced.

“The Phnom Penh government faces a real dilemma,” says one Western observer in Phnom Penh. “On the one hand, they have to impress the Western world that the Khmer Rouge is a threat in the hope that the Western world will do something. On the other hand, they have to say they are very confident because they need strong support inside the country.”

One government official was quoted as saying that military commanders had requested air strikes on Khmer Rouge positions but that Cambodian leaders rejected the request because of the threat of escalation involving Thailand. Such remarks are taken as a warning to Cambodia’s Thai neighbors.

By vowing never to surrender in Pailin, the government also seems to be throwing down the gauntlet to the Khmer Rouge, inviting a major test of strength. The Khmer Rouge, while active in the past three years, has never been able to hold Cambodian territory for long, thanks to Vietnamese assistance.

By Cambodian estimate, the government has about 10,000 troops defending Pailin, with about 7,000 Khmer Rouge deployed along the length of the border.

“I don’t think the Khmer Rouge has the capacity to take a town and hold it,” said one Western observer in Phnom Penh. “The Cambodian side will give the other side a real run for their money if they try to attack a major town.”