The formal name for the Cambodian state controlled by the Khmer Rouge from 1975 until 1979 was the Democratic Kampuchea. Pol Pot served as the Cambodian prime minister during this time, and, in this position, he advocated for communism and a radicalized form of nationalism that consequently created conditions of violent extremism for Cambodians who lived under his totalitarian rule. Between 1975-79, the people of Cambodia were subjected to drastic revisions to the structure of their society, including a return to an agriculturally-based economy and  the  “Four Year Plan” that sought to collectivize all private property.

The first year of the Khmer Rouge’s active regime in Cambodia in 1975 was declared as “Year Zero” by Pol Pot.  After the Khmer Rouge overtook the city of Phnom Penh, Cambodia was renamed Kampuchea, and the Khmer Rouge began widespread efforts to "cleanse" the nation of threats to the communist state by ordering the removal of Cambodians from urban areas to agricultural work camps and by killing over 90 former government officials in urban areas such as Phnom Penh. The cultivation of rice was a priority under the Plan, as Pol Pot’s regime built up their military resources by trading it for weaponry with China. Meanwhile, on an international scale, massive military confrontations and violence erupted between the opposing forces of Cambodia and Vietnam. Vietnamese troops subsequently invaded Cambodia and escalated the conflict to a full-scale war. By the time the Vietnamese overthrew the Khmer Rouge in 1979, the Khmer Rouge had been responsible for the deaths of approximately 1.7 million Cambodians.