Khmer Rouge Vs Vietnam

[Daithí]

Why did Vietnam and the Khmer Rouge fight after the Vietnam war?

[Enver]

Both the Chinese and the Americans supported the KR with arms and other resources. As far as I know the KR's violence was mainly directed against ethnic Vietnamese in Cambodia, so that may have been one possible cause of the conflict. I think KR incursions in the late 70s into Vietnam were what sparked the conflict though. China invaded Vietnam around this time also and was duly pulverised despite having a 10 to 1 numerical advantage.

[socrates]

Background

During the First Indochina War, when Vietnam and Cambodia allied against the French, Vietnamese forces had made great use of Cambodian territory in transporting weapons, supplies, and troops. This relationship lasted through the Vietnam War, and even after the war, people from both countries commonly crossed the border unhindered.

Even before the Vietnam War had ended, the relationship between the Khmer Rouge and Vietnam was strained. Clashes between Vietnamese and Khmer Rouge forces began as early as 1974. The Khmer Rouge demanded that the Mekong Delta area be returned to Cambodia, and that all Vietnamese leave this area. The Vietnamese refused these demands since the Mekong Delta had been Vietnamese territory for nearly three centuries. In retaliation, thousands of Vietnamese were either executed or forced out of Cambodia, and villages along the border were attacked. This led to further escalation of the conflict and ultimately to the Vietnamese invasion and occupation of Cambodia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambodian-Vietnamese_War