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to their nation's "independence and sovereignty" ruled out
any Soviet bases on their territory and that the treaty was
not directed at any third nation. Regarding their intentions
toward Kampuchea, they stated that the SRV troop buildup was.
purely defensive and gave assurances that Hanoi had no aggressive
plans toward the country. The Vietnamese also asserted that
they were powerless to control the flight of "malcontents"
who were not willing to work to build a new Vietnam, and
denied that government officials were facilitating departures"
in return for bribes. In light of these responses, movement
toward normalization came to a halt, as we awaited further
developments.
i
!
They
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On December 25, the Vietnamese mounted a major invasion.
of Kampuchea and now occupy large areas of that country.
have shown no inclination to heed repeated calls by large
segments of the international community to withdraw their troops
and permit the establishment of a neutral regime representative
of the Kampuchean people. In addition, they have demonstrated
no willingness to relent in their harsh domestic policies,
which have prompted ever increasing numbers of their citizens to
flee, with heavy loss of life, and have imposed heavy burdens
on the other nations of the region. Over 60,000 refugees
from Vietnam reached safehaven in Southeast Asia last month
a record.
F
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