Cambodia’s Minister for Economy and Finance Aun Pornmoniroth has emerged as a potential successor to Prime Minister Hun Sen following the recent ASEAN summits, where he represented his government in the Cambodian leader’s absence.
Hun Sen, the region’s longest serving leader, has dominated Cambodian politics for more than 35 years but missed the ASEAN summit after he entered quarantine amid a possible COVID-19 outbreak after a diplomatic visit, known here as the “November 3 Incident.”
Sources close to the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) said that Aun Pornmoniroth, a widely respected technocrat, was chosen because he is among the favorites for any eventual change in leadership, a routine source of speculation in the capital.
