[Thai] PM ready to confer with Hun Sen under JBC framework [-Abhisit's conditions will likely be rejected by Cambodia?]

BANGKOK, June 5 (MCOT online news) -- Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said Sunday that he is prepared to discuss with his Cambodian counterpart Hun Sen on ways to end the two countries' border tensions.

Mr Abhisit noted talks can start on under the conditions that: discussions must be held under the Thai-Cambodian Joint Boundary Commission (JBC) framework, a joint management plan for the disputed area near Preah Vihear temple must be made, and that Cambodia must also withdraw the temple from world heritage listing.

The Phnom Penh government must also display its sincerity by withdrawing its case handed to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to interpret its 1962 ruling on the ancient temple before talks can start, Mr Abhisit said.

His remarks were made after a close aide to Thailand's ex-prime minister Gen Chavalit Yongchaiyudh reportedly said that the latter had recently held talks with Mr Hun Sen in which both men agreed that forces of the two countries posted at the disputed 4.6-square-kilometre patch of land near the cliff-top Preah Vihear temple must be withdrawn and the area would be jointly managed thereafter while boundary demarcation would be handled by JBC members.

[Thai] Govt caught in JBC tangle

ANALYSIS: There's no light at the end of the tunnel.

31/03/2011
Nattaya Chetchotiros
Bangkok Post

It will be a long bumpy road for the government in dealing with issues surrounding the minutes of the Thai-Cambodian Joint Boundary Commission.

A major hurdle came yesterday when the Constitution Court threw out a petition seeking the court's ruling as to the status of the JBC minutes.

The court reasoned the petition submission was not in line with the regulations of petitioning the court to give a final ruling on a particular dispute under Sections 190 and 154 of the constitution.

The court also said more steps would have to be completed in parliament before a request for the court to give a final ruling on whether the JBC minutes could be lodged properly.

PM [Abishit] speaks to the press on Thai-Cambodia GBC; PAD protest area; censure motion

2/3/2011
Source: Thai gov't (http://media.thaigov.go.th)

H.E. Mr. Abhisit Vejjajiva, Prime Minister, responded to media enquires regarding the upcoming Thai-Cambodian Joint Commission on Demarcation for Land Boundary (JBC) meeting, scheduled for 7-8 March 2011 where he admitted that the meeting may not be able to conclude a settlement on the disputed area of Thailand claimed by Cambodia. As for the situation along the Thai - Cambodian border, the Prime Minister indicated that this issue maybe considered by Thai-Cambodian General Border Committee (GBC) or the Regional Border Committee (RBC).

[Thai] Army: Talks the way to end border row

1/02/2011
Bangkok Post

Army chief Prayuth Chan-ocha insisted on Tuesday that the best way to settle the border dispute with Cambodia is by formal talks.

It is most important the problem is resolved by negotiation through the Thai-Cambodian Joint Boundary Commission (JBC), Gen Prayuth said.

The Foreign Ministry was trying to arrange a new meeting of the JBC to discuss the matter.

The situation along the border remained normal today, and the 2nd Army was well prepared to ensure peace and order in the border area, he said.

[Thai] PM surprised by PAD claims

30/10/2010
Bangkok Post

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said his government is protecting the national interest by observing the 2000 Thai-Cambodian memorandum of understanding that governs the survey and demarcation of the land boundary between the two countries.

He made the point in response to the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) which filed a complaint with the Administrative Court yesterday, accusing the government of jeopardising Thai territory by its observance of the MoU.

Mr Abhisit, who was attending the 17th Asean summit in Hanoi yesterday, said his government had neither a hidden agenda nor vested interests.

The cabinet intended to protect the national interest in its request that parliament approve three proceedings of the Joint Commission on Demarcation for Land Boundary or the Joint Boundary Commission (JBC) of Thailand and Cambodia, he said.

The JBC was formed to implement the 2000 MoU, but it cannot begin its task without approval from the Thai parliament.

Mr Abhisit said he was surprised by the PAD accusation. He denied his government had used the widespread flooding in the country to mask the submission of the three JBC proceedings to parliament.

He said the proceedings were submitted to parliament publicly and the proposal took its normal pace after it had been shelved for a long time.

He said he was not worried about the PAD's planned rally on Tuesday to oppose the process but he warned participants to abide by the law.

Yesterday afternoon, PAD representatives accused Mr Abhisit's government of violating the laws of good national administration.

The group also accused the prime minister of violating the 2007 constitution by supporting an implementation of the 2000 MoU.

The PAD claimed seeking parliament's approval for the JBC's proceedings will lead to a loss of national territory.

Section 1 of the charter states that Thailand is one indivisible kingdom.

The PAD said that approval of the JBC's proceedings would lead to a temporary border agreement between the two countries and the agreement would allow Cambodia to challenge earlier settled sections of the boundary.

It also complained that the 2000 MoU recognised the French-made map at 1:200,000 scale. This put Thailand at a territorial disadvantage as the borderline in the map drawn by France encroached on Thai territory, the PAD claimed.

The PAD filed its complaint with the Administrative Court and asked the court to revoke the JBC's proceedings, the 2000 MoU and cabinet resolutions endorsing the negotiation framework for the JBC and supporting the proposal of the JBC's proceedings to parliament.

The PAD also sought an injunction to stop parliament from considering the proceedings. The court is expected to rule on the injunction on Monday.

[Thai] Cabinet revokes MoU on maritime border

11/11/2009
Bangkok Post

The cabinet has revoked a memorandum of understanding on the overlapping maritime boundary with Cambodia but it will not take effect until it is approved by parliament.

Acting government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn yesterday said the cabinet decided to scrap the MoU because former prime minister Thaksin knew the Thai position and details which could put Thailand in a disadvantageous position, and negotiations between the two countries had made little progress over the past eight years.

''We haven't benefited from this MoU because Cambodia has not cooperated in abiding by the framework set by this MoU that much,'' said Mr Panitan.

The MoU was signed in 2001 when Thaksin was prime minister. Its main goal is to demarcate the territorial waters and jointly explore natural gas and oil reserves in the area.

The cabinet will now seek parliamentary approval to annul the MoU.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said the cabinet needed to urgently propose the termination of the MoU to parliament because the current parliamentary session will end on Nov 28.

Meanwhile, a joint session of the two houses yesterday withdrew the agreed minutes of the Joint Boundary Commission on the joint survey and demarcation of the disputed area around the Preah Vihear temple. Members of the two houses voted 314 to 35 to withdraw it from the agenda.

[Thai] Joint Parliamentary Meeting Considers Agreements with Foreign Countries

10 November 2009
Thai-ASEAN News Network

The joint parliamentary meeting has concluded today with various issues being considered, including the revocation of the minutes of the Thai-Cambodian Joint Boundary Commission meeting and the framework for maritime border negotiation with neighboring countries.

The joint parliamentary session today endorsed the revocation of the minutes of the Thai-Cambodian Joint Boundary Commission meeting, as proposed by Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva.

It was a tense atmosphere during the deliberation of a framework for maritime border negotiation with Malaysia and Vietnam, as opposition Pheu Thai Party MP Jatuporn Prompan was trying to raise the issue of the Thai-Cambodian conflict at the meeting.

The opposition also claimed the Memorandum of Understanding or MOU, which was signed in 2000, has caused damage to the country.

However, Foreign Affairs Minister Kasit Piromya defended the MOU and affirmed that any border negotiation is not politicized or subject to interference by the government.

After hours of debate, Parliament approved the framework by 326 to 2 votes.

Energy Minister Wannarat Channukul also proposed reviewing a draft agreement on the establishment of an energy center under the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation.

The proposal was endorsed by Parliament members.

Also at the Parliament house, Democrat Spokesmen Thepthai Senpong and Buranat Samutarak held a press conference to call on convicted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra to take responsibility for his recent interview and stop adding fuel to the fire in the conflict with Cambodia.

The democrat spokesmen also urged Pheu Thai Party chairman General Chavalit Yongchaiyudh to reconsider whether he will continue to support Thaksin.

Meanwhile, the two denied that the government is taking advantage of the nationalistic sentiments.

Thailand-Cambodia diplomatic spat can be solved through dialogue [-Thailand flipflopping on JBC issue?]

BANGKOK, Nov 6 (TNA) – The diplomatic spat between Thailand and Cambodia did not originate from a conflict of interest between the two countries but in a personal matter, as Thailand considered Cambodia could not distinguish between personal affairs andnational ties, according to Mr Chavanont Intarakomalsut, Secretary to the Thai Foreign Minister.

Mr Chavanont said the opportunity for talks remains open to find a solution to the problem.

He said it was the duty of the foreign ministry to protect the kingdom's rights and protect the feelings of the Thai people. The foreign ministry recalled the Thai ambassador to Cambodia to express our dissatisfaction. Secondly the ministry will also review all agreements between the two countries along with any other cooperation taking place.

He said the ministry's action was a standard diplomatic reaction to protest to Cambodia following its appointment of convicted ex-Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra as economic advisor to the Cambodian government and personal advisor to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen.

The ministry hoped that the Cambodian government would reconsider its ecision and realised that it should distinguish between personal interests and the mutual interests of the two countries, he said.

Mr Chavanont said he believed there was no need for a mediator at the moment as the problem was between Thailand and Cambodia.

He added that the meeting result of the Thai-Cambodian Joint Boundary Commission (JBC) scheduled to be considered in Parliament on November 9 would not be delayed as it was aimed to solve the border disputes problems and should not be prolonged.

Postponing the meeting result could affect the people who lived in the border area, he said, adding that Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva had reaffirmed that any diplomatic measures should not affect the people of the two countries.

At the moment, the situation was not critical to the extent that the government must prepare a plan to evacuate Thais from Cambodia, but the Thai Embassy has been informed to closely monitor the situation, he said.

As for the Thai businessmen in Cambodia, he said the embassy had informed them about the situation, stressing that this was a different opinion on legal interpretation and that he believed the problem could be solved peacefully.

Second Army Area Commander Lt-Gen. Weewalit Jornsamrit said that the situation along the Thai-Cambodian border was normal, and no reinforcements were noted by either country.

He said the armed forces of the two countries still have good understanding and maintain relations, he said, adding that both armed forces shared the opinion that the problem was between the governments and they are trying to solve the problem.

He added that the border situation was normal, border trade was usual but if there was need to evacuate Thais, the armed forces were ready to do that.

JBC chair: Thai-Cambodian diplomatic spat on Thaksin may affect border talks

BANGKOK, Nov 6 (TNA) – The Thai co-chairman of the Thai-Cambodian Joint Boundary Commission (JBC) admitted Friday that the diplomatic spat between the two countries following the appointment of convicted Thai premier as economic adviser to the Cambodian government may affect the future talks on the border dispute between the two neighbouring countries.

The Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday recalled the Thai envoy to Phnom Penh, in its first retaliation to Cambodia after it appointed convicted former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra as personal advisor to Cambodian Premier Hun Sen and advisor on economy to his government.

Cambodia later withdrew its envoy to Thailand in a reciprocal action.

The Thai foreign ministry reasoned that the Cambodian decision to appoint Mr Thaksin and its stated intention to deny Thailand's request to extradite the ex-Thai premier to face jail in Thailand means that the neighbouring country could not differentiate between the bilateral relations of the two nations and personal ties, and that Cambodia is now intervening Thailand's domestic affairs and harming the Thai justice procedure.

Vasin Teeravechyan, advisor to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in his capacity as border commission co-chairman, said that the Thai decision to recall its ambassador to Phnom Penh is considered normal retaliation against the Cambodian government, while Cambodia also responded at the same level of reciprocal action by withdrawing its ambassador to Bangkok.

Mr Vasin said that no special procedure is needed if the two countries want to restore their diplomatic ties.”It depends on the circumstances,” he added. “If the situation eases up, the relationship between the two kingdoms will be restored automatically.

"If the Cambodian government revokes its order appointing Mr Thaksin as its adviser, it can be assumed that the ambassadors of the two countries can resume their duties," JBC co-chairman Vasin said.

He admitted, however, that the latest diplomatic spat on the Thaksin case will make the work under the JBC framework more difficult, although it has not yet had a direct impact on the commission.

He described that three JBC minutes can still not proceed as they have not been approved by the Thai Parliament.

"Whether the work under JBC framework will be delayed or not depends on the policy of the government and Parliament," said the JBC co-chairman. "Until now I have not been informed any order from the government."

Tensions between the neighbouring countries flared after the United Nations cultural body UNESCO approved Cambodia's bid in July last year to list the 11th century temple as a world heritage site, while the question of sovereignty over the 4.6 square kilometres of surrounding land has never been clearly resolved.

The two neighbouring countries however reiterated to solve the border conflicts peacefully through JBC mechanism, while there were some clashes between the soldiers of two countries along the border.

Thailand’s commitment to resolving Preah Vihear issue: Thai MoFA

Thailand’s commitment to resolving the Thai-Cambodian problem concerning the Temple of Phra Viharn Preah Vihear and its adjacent areas through peaceful means and existing bilateral framework remains unchanged

December 9, 2008
Thailand Ministry of Foreign Affairs

With reference to the press conference by Mr. Sompong Amornvivat, then Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand, on 13 November 2008 regarding the outcome of the Third Thai-Cambodian Foreign Ministers’ Meeting held in Siem Reap on 12 November 2008, at which Mr. Sompong notified that Thailand and Cambodia were able to agree on most of the issues on the table with only two issues pending due to the deviation in substance from the negotiating framework already approved by the Thai Parliament ,and as a result, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would have to seek the Cabinet’s decision to submit the two pending issues for Parliament’s consideration at the earliest opportunity, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs wishes to report on the progress made on this matter as follows:

1. The Cabinet decided on 19 November 2008 to submit the outcome of the Third Thai-Cambodian Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, in particular the two pending issues namely (1) the question of how the temple should be called in the Provisional Arrangements between Thailand and Cambodia - the name used by the Thai side being “Phra Viharn, while that used by the Cambodian side “Preah Vihear”, and (2) the details of troop redeployment, to which Cambodia had proposed certain changes. The Parliament scheduled to consider the outcome of the Third Thai-Cambodian Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on 24 November 2008. However, due to some inconveniences to the Parliament, the matter has not yet been taken up as scheduled.

2. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs had consultations with a number of members of the parliament both from the government and opposition parties. The main objective of the consultations is to provide the Parliament a better understanding of the outcome of the Third Thai-Cambodian Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, in particular the two pending issues, and of the necessity and urgency of its consideration. It is expected that the matter would be among the top priorities when the Parliament resumes its session.

3. The current situation in Thailand does not in any way affect Thailand’s firm commitment to pursuing peaceful settlement of the matter through the existing bilateral framework and boundary mechanisms, especially the Thai-Cambodian Joint Commission on Demarcation for Land Boundary (JBC). The JBC held its special meeting in Siem Reap on 10-11 November 2008, the results of which were submitted by the Cabinet for Parliament’s consideration at the same time as those of the FM III.

Border talks with Cambodia to go ahead next month

SAROJ TO DO HIS BEST TO MEND TIES, WILL STICK TO TIMETABLE SET BY PREDECESSOR

Sunday September 07, 2008
ACHARA ASHAYAGACHAT
Bangkok Post

Foreign Minister-designate Saroj Chavanaviraj has pledged to keep trying to mend ties with Cambodia and do his best to chair the Association of Southeast Asean Nations (Asean) meeting. Mr Saroj, 66, who said he would not give any formal interviews until his appointment is royally endorsed, stressed that he was committed to following the Thai-Cambodia meeting timeframe of the Joint Commission on Demarcation for Land Boundary (JBC).

Under the timeframe, agreed upon between his predecessor Tej Bunnag and the Cambodian foreign minister on Aug 19, both ministers would meet next month after the reduction of troops on the border near the Preah Vihear temple was completed.

Chairing the regional grouping would also be another main duty of the retired diplomat.

He said he would do his best in his new job.

Meanwhile, the commander-designate of the Second Army, Wiboonsak Neeparn, who is also the co-chair of the Thai-Cambodian Border Committee, said the political turmoil in Bangkok could be one of the reasons behind the indefinite postponement of the RBC meeting, which was to discuss the second phase of the troop redeployment in the controversial area around the Preah Vihear temple.

The meeting was to have taken place on Aug 29. Lt-Gen Wiboonsak conceded that Cambodia may not want to hold talks until the political conflict is resolved.

Another reason, he said, was the reshuffle and promotions within the Thai army. He will officially take over the post of Second Army commander on Oct 1.

Lt-Gen Wiboonsak stressed that both countries must honour the basic principle of the military reduction on equal terms.

Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong said Cambodia would withdraw all its military personnel from around the temple, which was listed as a World Heritage site on July 8, and install policemen instead.

Cambodia still has about 500 soldiers around the eastern side of the Preah Vihear foothill, while Thailand has deployed about 300 soldiers on the western side of the hill.

Foreign Ministry officials, however, predicted that progress in the Thai-Cambodian talks might not be as satisfactory as many would have hoped amid the political instability in Thailand.

The interim agreement to resolve the Preah Vihear border issues, which has to be endorsed by parliament to comply with the law on treaties, has not gone on the agenda of the cabinet meeting.

The interim agreement, prepared by the ministry with approval from the Cambodian side at a meeting in the resort town of Cha-am last month, was to provide a legal platform for officials to discuss the issues related to the border survey and demarcation under the terms of reference and master plan of the initial JBC agreement.