Cambodia could be hit by a 70 percent cut in U.S. aid next year under a budget proposed by U.S. President Donald Trump’s White House that would slash aid to developing countries around the world by more than a third, according to Foreign Policy magazine.
The outlet ran a story on Monday with what appears to be Mr. Trump’s 2018 proposed aid budget for developing countries, which includes a drop in contributions to Cambodia from $77.4 million to $22.9 million.
Development assistance worth $34.8 million and another $8 million in economic support would be cut completely.
USAID and U.S. State Department health programs would survive but lose a combined $11.7 million.
The proposed budget would need approval from U.S. Congress, and Foreign Policy reported that it was likely to face stiff resistance, though some cuts were likely.
U.S. aid accounts for a relatively small share of the roughly $1 billion in foreign aid Cambodia receives annually.
But a decrease would come at a time when many believe the U.S. is losing influence in Cambodia to China, which has been dramatically raising its financial support of the country in recent years.
