29/04/2011
Bangkok Post and Reuters
An uneasy calm settled over the Thai-Cambodian border yesterday after the two countries agreed to a ceasefire following a week of clashes which left 15 people dead and forced 48,200 villagers to flee the area.
The ceasefire agreement came hours after another heavy battle at the border between Surin's Kap Choeng district and Oddar Meanchey province of Cambodia.
Both sides agreed to stop the exchange of gunfire as of noon yesterday, said commander of the Second Army Lt Gen Thawatchai Samutsakhon after a 40-minute meeting with Lt Gen Chea Mon, chief of the Cambodian Fourth Region Army at a casino at the Chong Jom-O Samet checkpoint in Surin's Kap Choeng district.
''The fighting has apparently stopped,'' he said, adding that the army was closely watching the situation to ensure the agreement was not broken.
Clashes began last Friday at Surin's Phanom Dong Rak district before spreading to Kap Choeng and also Kantharalak district in neighbouring Si Sa Ket.
Despite promises to end the fighting, Lt Gen Thawatchai insisted on moving forward on the Thai position that the border dispute be resolved bilaterally. The involvement of a third country may complicate the issue and the intentions by both countries to quickly solve the problem, he said.
Army chief Gen Prayuth Chan-ocha said fighting would not recur as long as Cambodia refrains from firing shots.
The Thai army claimed Cambodian troops had opened fire on its troops first during the latest border skirmishes.
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said the government would monitor the situation to make sure the fighting had really stopped.
''The army chief says that the signs are good. But we still have to be prudent. I understand the talks are at the field-level but the skirmishes have eased, '' the prime minister said. ''We have to see how things go. There is still more time for things to change until May 7-8 [the date of the 18th Asean summit in Jakarta],'' he said.
In Phnom Penh, Cambodian government spokesman Phay Siphan said Thailand and Cambodia would honour the agreement and had agreed to reopen border checkpoints shut during the skirmishes.
''We will abide by the ceasefire from now on and local commanders will meet regularly to avoid misunderstandings,'' he said.
On the diplomatic front, Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya yesterday held talks with his Indonesian counterpart Marty Natalegawa on the sidelines of the Asean Ministerial Meeting on society and culture in Jakarta.
Mr Kasit said from the Indonesian capital that he had updated Mr Marty, Asean's current chairman, on the skirmishes.
He and Mr Marty also discussed the terms of reference for sending Indonesian observers to the Thai-Cambodian border, he said.
The draft terms of reference are being finalised and will be submitted for consideration to the Cabinet at its meeting next Tuesday.
Thailand and Cambodia agreed at a Feb 22 Asean Foreign Minister's meeting on Jakarta's proposal to send Indonesian observers to the Thai-Cambodian border after the first round of the border fighting took place near Preah Vihear temple between Feb 4 and 7.
About 15 unarmed Indonesian observers will be deployed on each side of the border for six months.
The border conflicts between Thailand and Cambodia are expected to be taken up during the summit of Asean leaders in Jakarta next month.
It is expected that Mr Abhisit and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen will use the opportunity to hold talks on the dispute over the overlapping land border.
Acting government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn said Mr Abhisit and Hun Sen had not yet scheduled talks.
Meanwhile, the border clashes early yesterday were reportedly the heaviest of the past week.
Sounds of sporadic gunfighting and shelling near Ta Muen Thom temple were heard through Wednesday night and yesterday morning.
It was reported the army reinforced troops and artillery tanks in Phanom Dong Rak district in Surin on Wednesday night. The fighting left one Thai sub-lieutenant dead and 11 Thai soldiers wounded.
The front line office of the Second Army Region yesterday reported that Thai troops had not detected any movement of Cambodian soldiers during the past three days, but spotted women and children in Cambodia's military bases.
More than 100 BM21 multiple rockets had landed on Thai villages since the fighting began, the office said.
Two Thai men were detained yester day for questioning after they made numerous suspicious phone calls to Cambodia during heavy shelling.
Serm Pochailert was detained in Ban Don Tan in Phanom Dong Rak district. The other man, Sanit Pimkao, was detained in Ban Non Ma Yan near Ta Muen Thom temple.
A preliminary investigation showed that they had made numerous calls to Cambodia during the fighting.
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