The Cambodian Embassy to the United Kingdom sent a complaint to the Daily Mail newspaper on Monday about a travel article the embassy claims “makes serious, damaging and unsubstantiated allegations” about the Cambodian government. In the letter, Ambassador Hor Nam Bora asks Associated Newspapers to apologise over the May 12 article by journalist Michael Buerk. In it, he called the government a “kleptocratic elite”. The Ambassador claims the piece “gratuitously insults” the Cambodian government and Prime Minister Hun Sen.

“Perhaps you will invite [Mr Buerk] to show how bold he really is by repeating such allegations in a Cambodian newspaper,” the letter stated.