Vietnam's intervention in Kampuchea

the rights of state v. the rights of people

Michael Leifer

pp. 145-156

in: Ian Forbes, Mark Hoffman (eds), Political theory, international relations, and the ethics of intervention, Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan, 1993

Abstract

It is notoriously difficult to formulate a precise definition of intervention which can fit all cases. Intervention is best understood as an act that can be placed along a continuum of state practice which may include such diverse undertakings as economic sanctions and radio broadcasts. The particular example of Vietnam's intervention in Kampuchea¹ is straightforward, however. On 25 December 1978, the Vietnamese Army carried a new government into Kampuchea almost literally in their saddlebags. They displaced an established government which enjoyed international recognition, including a seat at the United Nations, and installed a new government of their own choosing.