A Change of Guard

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Saturday 9 October 2010

Thailand withdrawn 1,000 troops from "disputed area" near Preah Vihear temple

Cambodian and Thai troops posed with Cambodia's Buddhist Patriarch Tep Vong after they dined together at Wat Keo Sekha Kirisvarak during the Pchum Ben Festival on 3rd October, 2010.

By Khmerization
Source: RFA

Cambodian military and Foreign Ministry officials have confirmed that Thailand had withdrawn 1,000 troops from the second frontline defence in the "disputed area" near Preah Vihear temple on Tuesday 5th October, one day after prime ministers of the two countries had met for 15 minutes on the sideline of the Asia-Europe meeting in Brussels.

Gen. Chea Dara, Cambodian Deputy Commander-in-Chief in charge of the Preah Vihear operations, had confirmed that 1,000 Thai troops had been withdrawn from the disputed area. He said since both prime ministers met in New York on 24th September and in Brussels on 4th October, the military situations along the border near the disputed temple had eased and troops from both sides had regularly met and dined together.

However, Thailand still maintained 10 troops in the hotly contested Wat Keo Sekha Kirisvarak Pagoda where hundreds of Thai troops had invaded on 15th July 2008, triggering a border conflict between the two countries. But Gen. Chea Dara said the military situations in the area have now eased significantly. "We've noticed that Thai troops have a very good attitude. Now the tensions have eased significantly. They have withdrawn their troops from the second frontline defence and in the last few days, there are meetings at every deployment point between Cambodian and Thai troops", he said.

Mr. Koy Kuong, spokesman for the Cambodian Foreign Ministry, said the withdrawals of Thai troops from the disputed areas would enable Cambodia and Thailand to continue their bilateral talks to end the conflict, despite Cambodia had insisted on multilateral involvements in the past. "This is a sign of the good relations between the two countries in order to ease the military tensions which will enable the progress in future talks", he said.

Speaking during a graduation ceremony at the National Institute of Education on 29th September, Prime Minister Hun Sen said Cambodia has not abandoned its insistence on multilateral involvements, but said he has re-initiated a bilateral talk because he wanted to avoid military confrontations and armed clashes.

So far, the Thai side has not yet responded to the Cambodian claims about its troop withdrawals.

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