PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AFP)--Cambodia will press Thailand's foreign minister for a solution to a border dispute during his first official visit to the kingdom next week, a Cambodian government spokesman said Thursday.
Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya (pictured) will meet Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, King Norodom Sihamoni and other high-ranking government officials during his Jan. 25-26 visit to Phnom Penh, Cambodia's foreign ministry said.
A ministry spokesman said officials including Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong will urge Kasit to help broker an agreement to defuse their sometimes violent territorial dispute as soon as possible.
Soldiers from Cambodia and Thailand clashed on Oct. 15 on disputed border land near the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple, leaving four soldiers dead.
"We expect him (Kasit) to be flexible and positive on the border," spokesman Koy Kuong said, adding that the Thai foreign minister had pledged a peaceful solution in a call to his Cambodian counterpart last month.
Thai foreign ministry officials weren't immediately available to confirm Kasit's trip.
Kasit was one of the most controversial appointments when new Thai premier Abhisit Vejjajiva named his cabinet on Dec. 20 because of his role in protests, which closed Bangkok's airports in November and December.
Kasit, a staunch nationalist, has criticized the previous government's handling of the crisis with Cambodia.
The Cambodian-Thai border has never been fully demarcated, partly because it is littered with land mines left over from decades of war in Cambodia.
The most recent tensions began in July when the Khmer temple was awarded United Nations World Heritage status, rekindling a long-running disagreement over the ownership of the surrounding land.
Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya (pictured) will meet Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, King Norodom Sihamoni and other high-ranking government officials during his Jan. 25-26 visit to Phnom Penh, Cambodia's foreign ministry said.
A ministry spokesman said officials including Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong will urge Kasit to help broker an agreement to defuse their sometimes violent territorial dispute as soon as possible.
Soldiers from Cambodia and Thailand clashed on Oct. 15 on disputed border land near the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple, leaving four soldiers dead.
"We expect him (Kasit) to be flexible and positive on the border," spokesman Koy Kuong said, adding that the Thai foreign minister had pledged a peaceful solution in a call to his Cambodian counterpart last month.
Thai foreign ministry officials weren't immediately available to confirm Kasit's trip.
Kasit was one of the most controversial appointments when new Thai premier Abhisit Vejjajiva named his cabinet on Dec. 20 because of his role in protests, which closed Bangkok's airports in November and December.
Kasit, a staunch nationalist, has criticized the previous government's handling of the crisis with Cambodia.
The Cambodian-Thai border has never been fully demarcated, partly because it is littered with land mines left over from decades of war in Cambodia.
The most recent tensions began in July when the Khmer temple was awarded United Nations World Heritage status, rekindling a long-running disagreement over the ownership of the surrounding land.
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