Cambodia’s Political Transition

Published

In this episode, Dr William Choong, Managing Editor of Fulcrum, and Dr Jayant Menon, Senior Fellow at ISEAS, talk to Prof Sophal Ear, Associate Professor at the Thunderbird School of Global Management at Arizona State University, about the political transition in Cambodia.

In this episode, Dr William Choong, Managing Editor of Fulcrum, and Dr Jayant Menon, Senior Fellow at ISEAS, talk to Prof Sophal Ear, Associate Professor at the Thunderbird School of Global Management at Arizona State University, about the political transition in Cambodia.

Clockwise from top left: Dr William Choong, Prof Sophal Ear, and Dr Jayant Menon in Dialogues at Fulcrum. (Screenshot: ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute)


Dialogues at Fulcrum is a podcast published by the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute. For quick reference, the themes below were discussed:

2:34 – Reflections on the historic political transition from long-serving Cambodian prime minister Hun Sen to his son, Hun Manet

9:55 – Will fairly widespread instances of dynastic succession in Cambodia constitute a concern?

15:46 – Will Cambodia become a more inclusive society under Hun Manet?

23:57 – The direction of Cambodia-China relations going forward

31:30 – Cambodia’s astute handling of its role as ASEAN Chair in 2022

35:40 – Will there be changes in Cambodia’s economic policy?

49:38 – The implications of the Ream naval base

Prof Ear lectures on global political economy, international organisations, and regional management in Asia. He wrote and narrated the award-winning documentary film “The End/ Beginning: Cambodia” based on his 2009 TED Talk and has appeared in five other documentaries. A graduate of Princeton and Berkeley, he moved to the U.S. from France as a Cambodian refugee at the age of 10.

Sophal Ear is a tenured Associate Professor and former Senior Associate Dean in the Thunderbird School of Global Management at Arizona State University. He is also the President of the International Public Management Network (IPMN) and Interim Chair of the Public Policy & International Affairs (PPIA) Program.