Thai-Cambodian border talks yet to draw conclusion

BANGKOK, Feb 4 (TNA) - A meeting of the Thai-Cambodian Joint Boundary Commission (JBC) on Wednesday had yet to draw a conclusion after disagreement on the name of the surveillance group to be stationed in the area around the ancient temple and the official name of the temple. Vasin Teeravechyan, chairman of the Thai-Cambodian JBC, said the two-day meeting, which ended on Wednesday, had not agreed on the name of the surveillance group to be stationed in area around the Preah Vihear temple. "We hope to find (solutions) in the next meeting, which will be held in the second week of April in Cambodia," said the Thai chairperson. The joint meeting also had yet to settle on a name for the site, as Cambodia refused Thailand’s proposed official name of the Temple of Phra Viharn instead of The Temple of Preah Vihear as Cambodia preferred. "We tried hard to find solutions in the interests of the two countries. We don't agree on some points which need to be discussed and clarified," chief Cambodian negotiator Var Kimhong told reporters. Earlier on Wednesday, the JBC discussed demarcation plans to be carried out in areas surrounding the Preah Vihear temple to prevent future clashes. The Thai chairperson, however, said this issue also had yet to be settled. Tension rose after Preah Vihear was awarded heritage status by the United Nations last year. The International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 that the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple belongs to Cambodia, but the demarcation of the surrounding land remains in dispute. Thailand insists on using the watershed as the border, while Cambodia maintains that the demarcation of the area must be based on a map drawn in 1908. Three Cambodian soldiers were killed in an exchange of gunfire with Thai troops along a disputed section of the border last July. (TNA)