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The Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC) has paid nearly half a million dollars since mid-last year to a U.S. public relations firm and consultant, to boost foreign investment and influence messaging on investor confidence, according to U.S. Justice Department filings.
The contract with Tricuro LLC, with a monthly retainer for tens of thousands of dollars, covers media outreach and public relations, and “does not include lobbying or advocacy regarding U.S. domestic policy,” according to a late-December filing under the Foreign Agents Registration Act.
The spending is part of a broader push in Washington, where Cambodia’s embassy and the CDC are now paying nearly $150,000 a month combined for lobbying, strategic communications and political outreach, filings show.
The campaign comes as Phnom Penh faces mounting reputational pressure over online scam operations, corruption and regulatory concerns cited by Washington and its deepening political and economic ties with China.
A regional investment advisor and policy expert have called the CDC influence campaign a calculated move to manage reputational risk, but warned that the use of communications firms does not substitute for substantive reforms.
Stephen Higgins, managing partner of Phnom Penh-based Mekong Strategic Capital, described the Tricuro contract as “strategic,” saying it involved relatively low cost with the potential for high economic returns.
But he said this did not mean the council should neglect issues such as corruption, lack of transparency and regulatory weaknesses, adding that it should be able to pursue multiple priorities at once.
For others, including Cambodian-American political scientist Sophal Ear of Arizona State University, the contract amounts to “defensive economic diplomacy.”
“This fits a familiar pattern in Cambodia’s external engagement,” he said. “Phnom Penh has long sought to compensate for political and regulatory weaknesses at home by shaping perceptions abroad, particularly in Washington and other financial centers.”
Like Higgins, Ear said communications firms could not replace reforms.“But it underscores how seriously the government views reputational damage as an economic risk,” he added.
Yet despite the outreach campaign, which began in July 2025, U.S. investment in Cambodia remains modest.
Limited U.S. Investment Underscores Structural Challenges
The U.S. government’s 2025 Investment Climate Statement on Cambodia said the country offers incentives such as full foreign ownership, tax holidays and unrestricted capital repatriation.
But it said Cambodia has attracted limited U.S. investment compared with regional peers, citing its small market, reports of systemic corruption, shortages of skilled labor, weak infrastructure and a lack of transparency in approval processes, even as the government has stepped up engagement, including through a twice-yearly dialogue with U.S. businesses.
Beyond Washington’s pressure campaign on transnational crime, which last year led to sanctions on politically connected figures and firms in Cambodia accused of running online scam operations, the Trump administration has also focused on the country’s heavy reliance on Chinese inputs in its manufacturing sector.
That supply-chain dependence became a flashpoint in the tariff war, though Cambodian exports ultimately faced regionally competitive duties.
Deputy Prime Minister and CDC First-Vice Chairman Sun Chanthol, listed as the official engaging the PR firm, recently told the Financial Times that Cambodia is seeking to reduce reliance on China, calling Trump’s “liberation day” tariffs a “wake-up call.”
The CDC, Tricuro, and another consultant listed in the contract, who has already received nearly $150,000, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Even as Chinese investment fell slightly from 2024 levels, the superpower remains dominant in Cambodia’s investment landscape.
Chinese investment accounted for about 54% of foreign inflows in 2025, with registered capital reaching $10 billion, the CDC says.
While granular data on U.S. investment is limited, it ranked behind several regional investors that also trailed Singapore, which accounted for about 4%.
