Dear Prince Sihanouk: I have given most serious thought to your letter of February 23, 1959, which I acknowledged on February 26.1 Your expression of friendly regard and confidence recalled to my mind the mutual understanding we affirmed on the occasion of your visit to my country last year.2 Therefore, I have received your letter in this spirit of amity and frankness, and wish to respond to it in the same vein.
I gather from your letter that the difficulties you describe stem essentially from misunderstandings in the relationships between your country and some of its neighbors. The resolution of such underlying problems depends primarily, I believe, on the actions and attitudes of the countries directly concerned. Nevertheless, the existence of amicable relations among all free nations, and particularly among those with which the United States shares close bonds of friendship, is of vital interest to me. Therefore, I was glad to request the Department of State to consult the Governments of Thailand and of the Republic of Viet-Nam in the context of our friendly relations with these countries.3
In the course of those consultations, the Government of Thailand affirmed its respect for the sovereignty and integrity of the Royal Cambodian Government. It expressed the opinion that internal disorder and instability in Cambodia would be harmful to the interests of the Free World and serve only the designs of international communism whose expanding activities in the area are of grave concern to Thailand. Furthermore, it indicated its willingness to cooperate with the Royal Cambodian Government in strengthening friendly relations on the basis of mutual respect and consistent good will. Finally, the Government of Thailand as a member of the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization reaffirmed its respect for the sovereign right of the Royal Cambodian Government as well as that of any other government to decide whether or not it wishes to adhere to Free World collective security arrangements.
In discussions, with Government of the Republic of Viet-Nam, that Government expressed its disapproval of any actions against the independence and liberty of Cambodia. It reaffirmed its desire to maintain friendly relations on a reciprocal basis with the Royal Cambodian Government as well as other Free World countries. The Government of the Republic of Viet-Nam also proposed in these discussions specific means of jointly controlling illegal activities in the Cambodian-Vietnamese frontier zone. The Government of the Republic of Viet-Nam expressed the convictions that agreement with the Royal Cambodian Government on such proposals would promote the maintenance of the best relations.
I trust that these views of the Governments of Thailand and of the Republic of Viet-Nam, if combined with an attitude of conciliation and good will on the part of the Royal Cambodian Government, will provide the basis for an improvement in mutual understanding and confidence between your country and its neighbors, which in turn will permit the three nations to develop sound, direct relations through normal diplomatic channels. I have discussed the substance of your letter with The Honorable William C. Trimble, whom His Majesty The King has agreed to accept as our new Ambassador at Phnom Penh, and expect to forward through him additional thoughts on this subject.4
My impression that the difficulties you describe stem essentially from inter-relationships between your country and its neighbors, does not ignore certain obligations which the United States incurs in the extension of American military assistance. You correctly perceive that the purpose of this assistance is to help free nations defend their independence. Just as we sought in Cambodia to insure certain safeguards on the use of this aid, we have sought and will continue to seek to insure that other governments use our assistance only for the purposes intended. The United States attaches the utmost importance to these international obligations.
Your proposal for supervised elections in Cambodia appears to involve a purely internal Cambodian matter on which I believe I cannot appropriately comment.5 At the same time, the United States Government has no reservation whatsoever in reaffirming its continued recognition of your full attributes and prerogatives as the President of the Council of Ministers of the Kingdom of Cambodia.
I was distressed to hear of the illness of His Majesty King Norodom Suramarit and I take this opportunity to express my personal best wishes for your father’s rapid and complete recovery.6
With warm regard. Sincerely
