Abstract
Cambodia, a nation controlled by kings, dictators and pummeled by foreign intervention, was finally ushered into an era of globalization in 1990 after decades of isolation and neglect. That year marked a turning point for the United Nations (UN). The Cold War had just ended and the organization’s capability and interest in humanitarian intervention had changed. No longer struggling under Cold War politics, the UN had the capacity to pursue peacekeeping missions. The missions were transformed by the ever-globalizing world, both in nature and in numbers. One of the first major UN missions after the Cold War was the peacekeeping mission to Cambodia. The operation was named the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC). The Global community began to support this ailing nation that was isolated by civil war, genocide and occupation. Since the end of the peacekeeping mission in 1993, which established a democratic government, constitution and regular elections, Cambodia has become a participating member in the global community. Cambodia has a fully liberalized economy and is an active member in forty-four international organizations, including the World Trade Organization, which granted membership in 2004. This paper examines the effects of Cambodia’s moving from isolation to globalization in the 1990s, how the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia aided this transition, and how the nation has developed and joined the global community in both trade and partnerships.