Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet publicly denied comments by some Thai internet users alleging that he used a Thai military quota to attend the United States Military Academy at West Point.
In a May 30 post following a message marking 27 years since his graduation, Hun Manet said the claim had surfaced repeatedly. He said he had not used a Thai quota and wanted to explain his route to admission.
He said the United States directly allocated places to individual countries and that countries could not transfer those places to one another.
He said that when he entered in 1995, Cambodia’s Ministry of National Defence nominated him and the U.S. Embassy in Cambodia endorsed his application. He also said his diploma identified him as a Cambodian cadet, which he cited in support of his denial.
He said anyone still seeking clarification could ask Thailand’s Ministry of Defence, the U.S. Embassy in Thailand or West Point whether there had ever beena case of a Cambodian candidate attending in place of a Thai candidate.
Hun Manet said he hoped his explanation would clear up the misunderstanding.
