Preparations for Thai-Cambodian border meet held in Bangkok

BANGKOK, July 21 (TNA) – The preparation meeting for the Thai-Cambodian General Border Committee (GBC) was held in Bangkok to prepare for the session set to be held in September, with the venue yet to be decided. The Joint Secretariat Meeting was co-chaired by Thai Border Affairs Department Director, Lt-Gen Nipat Thonglek, and Cambodian Deputy Defence Minister, Gen. Neang Phat. The meeting prepared information for the GBC in all aspects to promote good relations and mutual understanding between the two countries’ armed forces. Thai Defence Minister Gen. Prawit Wongsuwan and his Cambodian counterpart, Gen. Tea Banh, will head the delegates to the upcoming border meeting which will cover three topics comprising 17 issues including survey and demarcation of land boundary; prevention and suppression of drug trafficking, and cooperation on border trade. The most recent GBC meeting was held in April, at Cambodia’s Siem Reap, where the official name of the ancient temple of Preah Vihear (Phra Viharn in Thai) in the two bordering countries has not been agreed. The International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 that Preah Vihear temple belongs to Cambodia. Clashes have occurred frequently near the 11th-century temple after it was listed as the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)'s World Heritage Site as both countries maintain their claims on the area adjoining the temple. (TNA)