Monday, 17 August 2009
By Cheang Sokha
Phnom Penh Post
Phnom Penh Post
Govt says Gulf deployment over gas deal OK if kept in Thai waters.
MARINES and warships from the Thai navy's 1st Fleet have been deployed close to disputed areas in the Gulf of Thailand to monitor Cambodian oil explorations in the area, according to Thai media reports, prompting warnings from Cambodian officials that the country reserves the right to defend its sovereignty against any naval incursions.
On Saturday, the Bangkok Post reported that the forces have been deployed at Koh Kut, close to the 27,000-kilometre overlapping claims area (OCA), to monitor a recent exploration deal between the government and French petrochemical giant Total.
"We have to send our royal warships on patrol to proclaim our territory and warn Cambodia against initiating any action in the overlapping area," the newspaper quoted an anonymous Thai naval source as saying.
"If we let Total explore in the overlapping areas, it would mean we admit the area belongs to Cambodia."
Cambodian officials said that the Thai deployment was legitimate so long as it took place inside Thai territory, but warned that Cambodia would move to protect its sovereignty in the Gulf if Thai forces made incursions into the overlapping area.
"If their deployment moves into the [overlapping claims area] or into Cambodian waters, then we will defend our nation," said Var Kimhong, Cambodia's top border negotiator.
Phay Siphan, spokesman for the Council of Ministers, said the deployment was Thailand's decision, but that it would do little to resolve the maritime boundary dispute.
"[The deployment] will not scare Cambodia," he said.
"Thailand cannot use its forces to threaten Cambodia's security. Cambodia will defend its rights as an independent, sovereign state."
He added: "[We] will still keep [our] stance of resolving the dispute peacefully."
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During Prime Minister Hun Sen's visit to France in July, officials announced an agreement offering Total the exploration rights to a 2,430-square kilometre block - known as Area III - that sits inside the OCA.
The deal prompted complaints from the People's Assembly of Thailand (PAT), a nationalist advocacy group, that the Total agreement was a violation of Thai sovereignty.
The group wrote to Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva on July 30, criticising the government and armed forces for not taking action to head off the deal.
A copy of the letter was also reportedly sent to the French Embassy in Bangkok.
Matters are complicated by the fact that Bangkok also allocated the zone - which it refers to as B10 and B11 - to US oil company Chevron and Japan's Mitsui in 1971.
Var Kimhong said that Thailand's claims about the Total deal were "unreasonable", adding that Cambodia had not complained to Bangkok when it granted oil exploration rights in the OCA to Chevron and Mitsui.
Var Kimhong added that Cambodia was always open for negotiation on the two countries' maritime border, which has never been fully demarcated.
In Sokhemra, chief of the Cambodian coast guard stationed in Preah Sihanouk province, said that he had not heard of the naval deployment at Koh Kut, but that the Cambodian navy conducts regular patrols near the OCA and would be immediately aware of any Thai incursions.
Chum Socheat, spokesman for the Ministry of Defence, could not be reached for comment on Sunday, and Jean-Pierre Labbe, general manager of Total EP Cambodge, said he was out of the country and did not wish to comment over the phone.
4 comments:
This is yet another Thai bully. We wonder how come we never see Cambodia protest anything that Thailand does? Why any lands or waters Cambodia try to exploit natural resources are always Thai territories? This shows that Thailand is a nation of thief.
It is not that Thailand bully Khmer. It is Khmer bully Khmer; and Khmer PM is COWARD that is why Thailand keep on slap us in our FUCKING faces.
We need an educated PM not a 4th grade elementary school kids education, just look how they were talk on National TV like we talk to our classmate. And you know what? IT AIN'T GOING TO END.....because we have a COWARD PM.
The Cambodian government did not complain in the 1970s when the Thais gave the zone to Chevron and Mitsui because at that time the Lol Nol Governments and Cambodian elites were friendly with the Thais and recognised their shared culture gave them much in common. At that time, Vietnam and communism was the threat and Thailand with the support of the US was an ally against this.
Today, the reverse is true. The government regards Vietnam as the friendly neighbour despite the differences in culture, philosophy and the historical and present animosity between these 'hereditary enemies'.
It is, therefore, unsurprising that when recent history is taken into account, Cambodia currently has virtual open conflict with Thailand while border discussions with Vietnam have been conducted peacefully yet behind closed doors with claims being made at the time that Cambodian negotiators gave up territory to the Vietnamese. All with very little discussion or even being noticed by the less than media savvy Cambodian population.
Ultimately, the land border dispute was purely an exercise in the Thais testing Cambodian and international resolve. The true test will be the resource rich sea borders. With the government neglecting its navy and military in favour of self-aggrandisement (making themselves more important and richer), watch this space for some serious jingoism and flag waving to get the population on side for what will ultimately be a losing battle.
No doubt, the government will complain to international law bodies while at the same time ignoring its own laws in regards the treatment of its own population. It is ironic that the Cambodian government demands that other countries follow international law and uphold past agreements while the government has no qualms in fingering its nose at the international community when it comes to local laws and human rights.
At the end of the day, the only losers will be the Cambodian people just like the last time. The government's propoganda will be believed by the population. Yet, the government won't be sending their sons into harm's way. They'll ask the poor kids who have no jobs to go. Then they'll forget about them once they're injured and maimed. Families will be torn apart, but the government will still have their families and lexuses regardless who wins.
At the end, even if Cambodia can secure its resources, do you really think the money will be invested in schools, roads, hospitals etc? They didn't do it when the money didn't belong to them and was borrowed from other countries. When they don't have to ask for loans, be sure to see private helicopters appearing over PP as the elites use stolen money to beat the traffic while the rest of us struggle.
Cambodia doesn't need oil beacause samdech Hun Sen said, " We can eat banana tree." If we survive Khmer Rouge, we can survive withou oil.
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