Chinese involvement in Cambodia, 1978-1991

The years 1978 and 1979 were critical in shaping mainland China's foreign policy towards Cambodia during the 1980s up until the international peace treaty of 1991. For China, this involved utilizing Cambodian forces to halt the spread of Vietnamese hegemony in Southeast Asia while countering an increased Soviet presence on its southern periphery. Unfortunately, China's policy of supporting both Prince Sihanouk politically and the Khmer Rouge militarily was instrumental in reestablishing the Khmer Rouge as the most powerful faction in Cambodia's uncertain future. Therefore, the Khmer Rouge became something of a Chinese enigma, nurtured by Beijing to fight the Vietnamese but completely free from PRC control or responsibility