The European Union (EU) disarmament program in Cambodia closed on June 30 after 142,000

weapons were collected and destroyed in six years.

The EU Assistance on Curbing Small Arms and Light Weapons in Cambodia had been assisting

the Cambodian government since 2000 to solve the problems of small arms, which were

left over from decades of war and kept by civilians for protection during the 1990s.

The EU Council of Ministers determined that the mandate of EU ASAC had been fulfilled

and the project should end.

David de Beer, EU ASAC Project Manager, said small arms no longer constitute a threat

to the security and development of Cambodia.

All small arms of the Ministry of National Defense were securely stored and registered,

de Beer said. ASAC had also helped the government to institute a weapons management

system for state-owned small arms, he said.