PHNOM PENH : After a year of feuding among power-hungry politicians, Cambodia at last has a government with observers predicting a short honeymoon but fretting over its long-term future.

Cambodia's 123-seat parliament endorsed Prime Minister Hun Sen's new coalition government Thursday, jointly electing him back to his top spot and his partner, royalist chief Prince Norodom Ranariddh, as its president.

The session ended in smiles after months of covert talks, temper tantrums and intrigue in the wake of July 2003 polls as the main parties tussled over an outcome to keep their members content.

Diplomats foresee the rare display of harmony in tumultuous Cambodia lasting for at least a few months as Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party (CPP) and the royalists pull together to pass a mountain of backlogged legislation.

Both have indicated they will support the two most urgent bills awaiting passage: approval for a UN-backed Khmer Rouge tribunal to go ahead and the ratification of Cambodia's accession to the World Trade Organisation.

"I think there will be a greater desire to show that this government can work together and move on, especially after the year-long deadlock," one senior foreign diplomat told AFP.

"For the next few months, if not longer, we are likely to see at least some cooperation and progress as they work in partnership."

Thursday's session ended a week of unease, even though the crisis appeared to be over last month when the CPP and FUNCINPEC inked a power-sharing deal paving the way for their third five-year mandate.

But it encompassed a controversial bill to let their leaders be jointly voted into their positions, illustrating Hun Sen's ongoing fear of rebellion among the coalition ranks.

King Norodom Sihanouk, who has been waiting out the crisis in North Korea irked by being ignored rather than embraced as the country's deal-broker, ordered acting head of state Chea Sim to decide whether to sign the bill.

The veteran politician, who heads a faction rivalling Hun Sen, refused. In the tensest incident to flare over the past year, forces surrounded his home early Tuesday and he was escorted to Bangkok, ostensibly for medical treatment.

Fear among Phnom Penhers mounted as some shops shuttered their doors, many people stayed home and an apparently unrelated citywide blackout and water cut fanned rumours of unrest.

But a royalist senator signed the bill, the CPP denied any party split and the king stepped back in to summon MPs to parliament Thursday.

Hun Sen, one of the world's longest-serving leaders, and Ranariddh were oblivious to Thurday's no-show by the opposition who claim they have been elected illegally and painted a rosy picture for the future.

"We will not just have cooperation between the leaders, Prince Norodom Ranariddh and myself, but we will also have cooperation from the top to the bottom," Hun Sen enthused.

Hun Sen also lavished praise on Ranariddh, with whom he has always uneasily shared power and even ousted in a bloody 1997 coup when street fighting rocked the capital.

Observers warned it would be crucial for Hun Sen to smooth over the now-obvious cracks in his own party.

"I think the prime minister will try to address the concerns within the party and will try to have the parties in the coalition work together. If he succeeds Cambodia will have stability and progress," the diplomat said.

Activists meanwhile remain perturbed over the huge number of new positions created in a government already notoriously inefficient and corrupt.

"We are worried about the government having so many members," said Kol Panha, executive director of election monitoring group Comfrel.

"It will be good if all these members help each other work, but if they are there just to block the other party ... then they will create more problems."

Cabinet slots alone have more than doubled to 186, sparking fears of infighting and rising costs from corruption that Cambodia cannot afford after more than two decades of war that ended only in 1998.

- AFP