General information
Part of Conflict: Cambodia (Kampuchea) - Vietnam (North Vietnam)
Date of first stated goals of incompatibility: 1975-12-31
Comment on date of first stated goal of incompatibility: There is limited reliable information about the developments at the time of Khmer Rouge’s ousting of Gen. Lon Nol regime and the fall of Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) to the North Vietnamese communist troops in April 1975. One reason to the lack of information is that very few, if any, foreigners were allowed in the area at that time. Cambodian troops reportedly crossed the border into Vietnam on 1 May 1975, the day after the fall of Saigon, having announced their aim to reoccupy the whole of Kampuchea Krom. Shortly after the countries reportedly wished to solve the border dispute. No information regarding the exact date of the first time Cambodia (Khmer Rouge) stated their aim to regain Kampuchea Krom has been found.
Date of first use of armed force: 1975-05-01
Comment on date of first use of armed force: The first clashes between Cambodian and Vietnamese forces took place on 1 May 1975, when Cambodia reportedly attacked Vietnam with the aim to regain territory lost in the 18th century. The clashes reportedly resulted in heavy casualties. Later the same month, there were also a number of clashes on the offshore islands, such as the Tho Chu (Vietnam territory) and the Poulu Wai (Cambodian territory).
There is little reliable information available on the developments during conflict, especially during the 1975 and 1976 when there were relatively little activity, and both countries blamed its neighbor for starting the conflict. On 31 December 1979, Cambodia claimed that Vietnam had attacked the border area and set up bases in the Cambodian provinces Ratanakiri and Mondolkiri. Vietnam on the other hand claimed on 7 April 1978 that Cambodia had launched attacks at several locations along the border, from the Ha Tien (located in the coastal area) to Tay Ninh (located north of the Cambodian territory strip called “Parrot’s Beak”).
First Battle Related Death: 1975-05-01
Comment on First Battle Related Death: The first clashes between Cambodian and Vietnamese forces took place on 1 May 1975, when Cambodia reportedly attacked Vietnam with the aim to regain territory lost in the 18th century. The clashes reportedly resulted in heavy casualties. There are however no exact figures when it comes to the number of battle related deaths, but both contemporary reporting from 1975 and later indicate that there were battle related deaths. Later the same month, there were also a number of clashes on the offshore islands, such as the Tho Chu (Vietnam territory) and the Poulu Wai (Cambodian territory).
Date when dyad reached 25 battle releated deaths: 1975-12-31
Comment on date when dyad reached 25 battle related deaths: The first clashes between Cambodian and Vietnamese forces took place on 1 May 1975, when Cambodia reportedly attacked Vietnam with the aim to regain territory lost in the 18th century. The clashes reportedly resulted in heavy casualties. There are however no exact figures when it comes to the number of battle related deaths. Later the same month, there were also a number of clashes on the offshore islands, such as the Tho Chu (Vietnam territory) and the Poulu Wai (Cambodian territory).
Due to the lack of reliable information, it is not possible to give a more exact date for when the conflict reached 25 battle related deaths than before 31 December 1975. The only references available regarding casualties consist of general notes of “casualties” or “heavy casualties”. It is, however, possible to draw the conclusion, based on the number of clashes reported and the references of heavy casualties, that the threshold of 25 battle related deaths was reached during 1975.
Conflict issues
Annual information
This section contains annual information systematically collected by the UCDP.
1975
| Estimated Fatalities | |
|---|---|
| High | 25 |
| Best | 25 |
| Low | 0 |
Secondary Warring Support:
Side A (Government of Cambodia (Kampuchea)): n/a
Side B (Government of Vietnam (North Vietnam)): n/a
1976
| Estimated Fatalities | |
|---|---|
| High | 25 |
| Best | 25 |
| Low | 0 |
Secondary Warring Support:
Side A (Government of Cambodia (Kampuchea)): n/a
Side B (Government of Vietnam (North Vietnam)): n/a
1977
| Estimated Fatalities | |
|---|---|
| High | 25 |
| Best | 25 |
| Low | 0 |
Secondary Warring Support:
Side A (Government of Cambodia (Kampuchea)): n/a
Side B (Government of Vietnam (North Vietnam)): n/a
Dyad Archive
This section contains annual information no longer systematically collected by the UCDP.
1975 Dyad Archive
Comment on Yearly Battle Related Deaths: The number of battle-related deaths in this dyad is unclear, but activity at the least surpassed 25 battle-related deaths.
Comment on Active: It is unclear were the initial clashes between the two parties took place. Vietnam claimed that Cambodia had launched attacks at several locations along the border, from the Ha Tien (located in the coastal area) to Tay Ninh (located north of the Cambodian territory strip called “Parrot’s Beak”). Cambodia on the other hand claimed that Vietnam had attacked the border area and set up bases in the Cambodian provinces Ratanakiri and Mondolkiri.
Later in May, there were also a number of clashes on the offshore islands, such as the Tho Chu (Vietnam territory) and the Poulu Wai (Cambodian territory).
Negotiations: NO
Victory: NO
Terminated: NO
1976 Dyad Archive
Comment on Yearly Battle Related Deaths: The number of battle-related deaths in this dyad is unclear, but activity at the least surpassed 25 battle-related deaths.
Negotiations: YES
Comment on Negotiations: Negotiations were held between the two countries in Phnom Penh on 4-18 May. Both parties agreed to follow the map used by France before 1954 and to arrange liaison committees to settle the border dispute. The parties were, however, not able to come to an agreement regarding the sea border. Vietnam did not agree to use the Brévié Line (the colonial era demarcation line) as the final border line. The talks were halted on Kampuchea’s request and were not resumed during 1976.
Victory: NO
Terminated: NO
1977 Dyad Archive
Comment on Yearly Battle Related Deaths: The number of battle-related deaths in this dyad is unclear, but activity at the least surpassed 25 battle-related deaths.
Comment on Active: The uncertainty of the actual developments was considerable due to the contradictory reports given by both countries as well as by neutral sources. The most often cited locations in which fighting reportedly took place were the two Vietnamese provinces, Kien Giang and An Giang (located between the Mekong delta and the coast), the “Parrot’s Beak” area (a strip of Kampuchean territory that stretches into Vietnam) and the Kampuchean border provinces Mondolkiri and Ratanakiri, north of the “Parrot’s Beak”. There were also claims about several attacks along the border of the Vietnamese province Tay Ninh.
Negotiations: NO
Victory: NO
Terminated: YES
Type of termination: Other
Date of termination: 1977-12-31
Comment on Termination: Despite reported border clashes during 1978, the conflict was not considered active that year, since the incompatibility turned from territorial claims to governmental power in Kampuchea. No statements made by Kampuchea or Vietnam concerning the territorial dispute was found for 1978. Instead, several sources noted Vietnam’s involvement in Kampuchea’s internal conflict over governmental power. The fighting was therefore seen as a part of the internationalised intrastate conflict over governmental power in Kampuchea.
