Cambodia willing to withdraw troops from disputed area with Thailand

PHNOM PENH, July 9 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia is willing to withdraw troops from the Provisional Demilitarized Zone (PDZ) surrounding the Preah Vihear Temple in the future in order to comply with the order of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), a Cambodian senior official said Monday.

"Of course, we are willing to pull our troops out of the PDZ to abide by the ICJ's order," Koy Kuong, spokesman for Cambodia' s foreign ministry, said. "We do not announce the troop pullout today (July 9), but we will do it in the future and it will be good if Thailand is willing to do so in order to honor the Court' s order."

The spokesman's comments were made after The Bangkok Post online reported on Monday that Cambodia is expected to announce the withdrawal of troops from the PDZ near Preah Vihear temple today (July 9), citing anonymous Thai military sources.

Cambodia withdraws more troops from border with Thailand

2011-08-18

(YTWHW.com) - Cambodia on Thursday has pulled out more troops from disputed border area with Thailand, said the spokesman for the Ministry of Defense.

Lt. Gen. Chhum Socheat said the redeployment or reduction of the Cambodian troops was made from the area of Ta Moan and Ta Krebey temples, about 150 km west of Preah Vihear temple.

The troops in the area pulled back to their base in Anlong Veng district, Oddar Meanchey province, he said, declining to disclose the number of troops allowed to return to their barracks.

Chhum Socheat said the troop redeployment was made at the order of Prime Minister Hun Sen after the border tension has eased since Pheu Thai Party won a landslide victory in the general election on July 3.

Cambodia Withdraws Troops From Border With Thailand

PHNOM PENH, Aug 9 (Bernama) -- Hundreds of Cambodian troops were pulled back from the disputed border area with Thailand on Monday, Vietnam News Agency (VNA) reported.

The troops were withdrawn from Choam Te border area, located some 20 kilometres east of Preah Vihear Temple, to their former camp in Kampong Thom province.

Kun Kim, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces, who presided over the pull-back ceremony, said the redeployment of the troops was made at the order of Prime Minister Hun Sen following the ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) last month.

However, the pull-back was made at border areas outside the provisional demilitarised zone that defined by the ICJ's order only.

Cambodia Reportedly Pulls Out Troops From Disputed Border Area

BANGKOK, July 30 (Bernama) -- Cambodia has reportedly withdrawn some 2,500 troops from an unsettled area bordering Thailand, a move expected to ease tension between the two neighbouring countries, Thai News Agency (TNA) reported.

Updated reports on Saturday said that Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen had ordered the troop withdrawal from the contentious border area surrounding the Preah Vihear Temple. Newspapers showed pictures of Cambodian troops and tanks leaving the area.

The withdrawal of the Cambodian troops came almost two weeks after the Hague-based International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered both Thailand and Cambodian to pull out their troops from the unsettled area pending the World Court's concluded decision on a case earlier filed by Phnom Penh, requesting the UN highest court to provide clarification of its 1962 ruling on the Preah Vihear Temple.

Cambodia pulls back troops from disputed temple

PHNOM PENH, Aug 27 (Reuters) - Cambodia began a partial withdrawal of troops from its disputed border with Thailand on Thursday, a move likely to ease tensions between the two over a 900-year-old Hindu Khmer temple.

"This shows the positive position of Cambodia, that we want to live in peace, and is something the two nations will benefit from," said General Chea Dara, deputy commander in chief of Cambodia's armed forces.

"At the same time, we still have enough troops to defend our own territory," he told Reuters by telephone from the border.

The regional commander on the Thai side of the border said there were no plans to follow suit.

"There will be no withdrawal from this side," Major-General Chawalit Chunprasan told Reuters.

The Preah Vihear temple, which is perched on an escarpment that forms a natural border between the two Southeast Asian neighbours, has for decades been a source of tension and nationalist fervour.

The two countries have been embroiled in a series of standoffs over the temple in the past year, resulting in border skirmishes that claimed the lives of seven troops.

Thailand is challenging a United Nations decision to make the temple a world heritage site under Cambodia's sole jurisdiction.

Cambodia was awarded Preah Vihear in a 1962 international court ruling, but the court did not determine the ownership of 1.8 square miles (4.6 sq km) of scrub next to the ruins.

Thailand wants joint development and supervision of the temple, which could one day become a lucrative tourist site.

The two countries are also in dispute over parts of the Gulf of Thailand, where oil and gas deposits have been found.

Military representatives from both sides agreed on Monday to exercise restraint at the border. The Cambodian pull-back is due to end on Sunday.

(Reporting by Ek Madra in Phnom Penh and Panarat Thepgumpanat in Bangkok; Editing by Martin Petty)