Asean Sec-Gen's Comments Not On Cambodian Military Exercise

KUALA LMPUR, March 18 (Bernama) -- The Asean secretary-general's recent comments on developments in Cambodia pertained to the prevailing situation along its border with Thailand.

Dr Surin Pitsuwan said it was not in reference to any particular military exercise in Cambodia which he had no knowledge of, at that point in time on March 5.

Bagas Hapsoro, Asean's Deputy Secretary-General (Community and Corporate Affairs), said in a statement that it was unfortunate that the two different issues were placed together in a Bernama article from Bangkok, "ASEAN Fears Cambodia May Send Wrong Signal".

"The question directed at me was of a general nature, and my responses were with specific reference to the prevailing situation along the Cambodian-Thai border which I have expressed on many occasions before, to all ASEAN Foreign Ministers and to the ASEAN Leaders," said Dr Surin.

He said his concerns on the border situation had been publicly expressed on numerous occasions and were a routine response to media enquiries.

Sacrava's Political Cartoon: Dr Surin

Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at http://sacrava.blogspot.com)

“Hun Sen is using the ASEAN principle of non-interference for his own benefit, and this is not the first time he has done it”: Yasmin Sungkar

(Photo: RICKY YUDHISTIRA, Jakarta Post)

ASEAN Surin responds to ‘unwarranted’ criticism

Thursday, March 11, 2010
Lilian Budianto
The Jakarta Post

ASEAN Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan has denounced as totally out of context media reports quoting him on a military exercise in Cambodia last week.

Surin was responding to a radio address in which Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen lambasted Surin for interfering in the country’s domestic affairs after Cambodian troops fired some 200 rockets last Thursday at an airfield 180 kilometers from the Thai border.

In a press release made available Tuesday, Surin said he had no intention nor was he referring to any particular military exercise in Cambodia, of which he had no knowledge at that point in time.

“The question directed at me was of a general nature, and my responses were with specific reference to the prevailing situation along the Cambodian—Thai border which I have expressed on many occasions before to all ASEAN foreign ministers and to ASEAN leaders,” he said.

Thailand and Cambodia, both members of ASEAN, have been involved in a spat over land adjacent to the 11th-century Preah Vihear Temple that belongs to Cambodia.

The dispute led to several skirmishes, but other ASEAN members have pledged not to interfere unless invited to help resolve the issue.

In his radio address, Hun Sen accused Surin of “crazy work” in interfering in Cambodian affairs.
“I think his excellency Surin Pitsuwan is not suitable as ASEAN secretary-general,” Hun Sen said as quoted by Malaysian news agency Bernama.

“If you are stupid, don’t do it,” he added. “If he doesn’t make a correction I will attack this secretary-general during the ASEAN meeting.”

In his statement, Surin expressed deep regret that the issue had caused “much misunderstanding and discomfort” and had led to “a very unfortunate and unwarranted effect”.

Although reiterated commitment for ASEAN Community by 2015, the 10 ASEAN member states have been at odds over several bilateral issues, some of which have been taken to international forums for arbitration.

Indonesia and Malaysia, for instance, are still hashing out the ownership of the Ambalat maritime block off eastern Borneo.

The situation has not devolved into armed skirmishes, although naval tensions escalated last year.

Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) researcher Yasmin Sungkar said it was improper for a serving prime minister to speak so harshly in public, as it would weaken the organization’s credibility.

“Hun Sen is using the ASEAN principle of non-interference for his own benefit, and this is not the first time he has done it,” she said.

Asean Official Regrets Rocket ‘Misunderstanding’

By Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer
Original report from Washington
10 March 2010

A senior Thai Asean official has expressed regret for commenting on a rocket-launch exercise undertaken by Cambodia last week, following a sharp rebuke from Prime Minister Hun Sen.

Asean Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan issued a statement late Tuesday expressing “deep regret that the issue has caused much misunderstanding and discomfort” and had “a very unfortunate and unwarranted effect.”

Surin was criticized for reports claiming he had said the test-launch of some 200 rockets from Cambodian trucks last week could give an impression of regional instability. Surin said Tuesday he had been misquoted.

Cambodia and Thailand are locked in a military standoff at the border near Preah Vihear temple and in a diplomatic row over the appointment of ousted Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra as an economic adviser to Hun Sen.

Hun Sen said in a public speech Tuesday the exercise was no business of Asean, and Cambodia’s Foreign Affairs Ministry issued a sharp rebuke of the remarks, reported by the Bernama news agency.

Officials from the Foreign Affairs Ministry declined to comment Tuesday, saying they had not yet seen Surin’s statement.

Letters from Surin Pitsuwan to Hun Xen and Hor 5 Hong

Click on the letters to zoom in

My comments are taken out of context : [Surin Pitsuwan,] Asean Chief

Tuesday, March 09, 2010
The Nation

Asean's chief Surin Pitsuwan on Tuesday insisted that media reports quoting him over a military exercise in Cambodia were taken totally out of context.

His comments were with specific reference to the prevailing situation along the Cambodian-Thai border and not to any particular military exercise in Cambodia.

Cambodia had conducted a military exercise on March 4 during which Khmer troops tested equipment and fired some 200 rockets at an airfield 180 kilometres from the Thai border.

Malaysia's Bernama news agency recently quoted Surin as saying that "Cambodia might have signaled as though the region was unstable" by firing rockets last week during a border dispute with Thailand.

Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen lambasted on Monday that Surin was unsuitable for the job, accusing him of "crazy work" for reportedly questioning a recent rocket drill.

In his statement issued on Tuesday, Surin said, "The question directed at me was of a general nature, and my responses were with specific reference to the prevailing situation along the Cambodian-Thai border which I have expressed on many occasions before to all Asean Foreign Ministers and to the Asean leaders.

Surin added that his concerns on the border situation had been publicly expressed on numerous occasions and were a routine response to media enquires. He stressed that no other media, foreign or Thai, had reported on his statements made following the Bangkok conference.

Expressing his deep regret that the issue has caused much misunderstanding and discomfort and had "a very unfortunate and unwarranted effect", Surin said.

He insisted he had no intention nor was he referring to any particular military exercise in Cambodia which he had no knowledge of at that point in time.

Som Niyeay Phorng - Op-Ed by Angkor Borey News

Click on the article in Khmer to zoom in

Sacrava's Political Cartoon: The Rockets

Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at http://sacrava.blogspot.com)

Sacrava's Political Cartoon: Dr. Surin Pitsuwan

Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at http://sacrava.blogspot.com)

Surin blasted over military drill remarks

Hor Namhong: Concerned

09/03/2010
Achara Ashayagachat
Bangkok Post

Cambodia has criticised Surin Pitsuwan for comments he made about its recent military exercise, accusing the Asean secretary-general of interfering in its internal affairs.

Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Hor Namhong said in a letter sent on Sunday to the Asean secretariat that Mr Surin should not be concerned with the Cambodian army exercise, "which would in no way send wrong signals that the region is unstable".

The letter was in response to comments attributed to Mr Surin by the Malaysian national news agency Bernama that the Cambodian army's exercise on Thursday in Kompong Chhnang province, about 90km from Phnom Penh, "might have signalled as though the region was unstable" and that "we are very concerned with such developments".

Hor Namhong said in his letter that Cambodia had chosen to conduct the exercise far from the border with Thailand to avoid misunderstanding and comments from the Thai side.

"As a former foreign minister of Thailand [Mr Surin was foreign minister from 1997 to 2001], you know very well that the conduct of army exercises by any country anywhere in the world is absolutely a normal practice," the veteran Cambodian minister said.

"Even Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva had said that Thailand had no problem with the exercise as 'we also had our own drills recently'."

Hor Namhong reminded Mr Surin the Thai army had, not long ago, conducted military exercises near the Cambodian border and "even overshot its artillery into Cambodian territory". Cambodia, however, had not reacted or made any comment.

The Cambodian armed forces, the minister said, would never undertake any action against any country, adding "their job is solely to protect Cambodia's sovereignty and territorial integrity".

"I strongly believe that in your capacity as secretary-general of Asean, you should not make any wrong statement which may bring about a bad image to an Asean member country, and thus to Asean as a whole," Hor Namhong said.

Mr Surin should not make any statement "which could be considered as interference in the internal affairs of Cambodia, a member of Asean. Normally, and in principle, an Asean secretary-general should exercise some self-restraint while making any comments or statements concerning an Asean member country."

The letter was sent to all Asean foreign ministers and Cambodian media outlets, a copy of which was seen by the Bangkok Post. The Asean secretary-general could not be reached for comment.

"You must make a correction... The rockets did not hit your head": Hun Xen to Surin Pitsuwan

Cambodian PM lambasts ASEAN secretary general

PHNOM PENH (AFP) - Cambodian premier Hun Sen on Monday said the head of Southeast Asia's regional body was unsuitable for the job, accusing him of "crazy work" for reportedly questioning a recent rocket drill.

Hun Sen was responding to comments printed in local newspapers attributed to Surin Pitsuwan, the secretary-general of the 10-member Association of Southeast Nations (ASEAN) and a citizen of Thailand, with which Cambodia has tense relations.

"I think that his excellency Surin Pitsuwan is not suitable as ASEAN secretary general," Hun Said said during a speech on national radio, adding: "if you are stupid, don't do it".

Cambodian newspapers carried reports by Malaysia's Bernama news agency quoting Surin as saying that

"Cambodia might have signaled as though the region was unstable" by firing rockets last week during a border dispute with Thailand.

But Hun Sen said Cambodian troops were merely testing equipment when they fired some 200 rockets last Thursday at an airfield 180 kilometres (about 110 miles) from the Thai border.

His speech to disabled Cambodian military veterans in southern Kampot province went on to accuse Surin of "crazy work" interfering in Cambodian affairs.

The premier pointed out that leaders of other Southeast Asian countries, including Thailand, showed no concerns about the test, and called for Surin to retract his statement or face a confrontation when leaders meet next month in Hanoi.

"If he doesn't make a correction I will attack this secretary general during the ASEAN meeting," Hun Sen said.

Addressing Surin directly in the speech, he added: "You must make a correction... The rockets did not hit your head."

Hun Sen has recently made a number of fiery speeches railing against Thai "invaders" and "thieves" in disputed territory around an 11th century temple on their border, where there have been deadly clashes in the past two years.

Cambodia and Thailand have been locked in nationalist tensions and a troop standoff at their disputed border since July 2008, when Cambodia's Preah Vihear temple was granted UNESCO World Heritage status.

Four soldiers were killed in clashes in the temple area in 2008 and three more in a gunbattle last April. Smaller flare-ups continue to be reported between troops in the area.

Hun Sen slams Asean Sec-Gen

Mar 09, 2010
AFP

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen yesterday hit out at the Asean Secretary-General, accusing him of "crazy work" for questioning a recent rocket drill.

"I think that his excellency Surin Pitsuwan is not suitable as Asean Secretary-General," Mr Hun Sen said during a speech, adding: "If you are stupid, don't do it".

He pointed out that other Asean leaders, including Thailand - with whom Cambodia has an ongoing border dispute - showed no concerns about the test.

Calling on Mr Surin, who is a Thai citizen, to retract his statement or face a confrontation when Asean leaders meet next month in Hanoi, he said: "You must make a correction ... The rockets did not hit your head."

Asean Rocket Comments Draw Hun Sen’s Ire

By Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
08 March 2010

Prime Minister Hun Sen lashed out a senior Thai Asean official on Monday for remarks critical of Cambodia’s military rocket exercise last week.

Asean Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan was quoted by the Bernama news agency Friday saying the test-firing of some 200 rockets in Kampong Chhnang province could have signaled instability in the region.

Speaking to a group of disabled soldiers in Kampot province Monday, Hun Sen said Surin had “interfered in Cambodian internal affairs” with his remarks.

“Cambodia just tested the BM-21 rocket launcher,” Hun Sen said. “It is not your business as Asean secretary-general. Why have the Thai prime minister and deputy prime minister not reaceted to this at all? But the Asean secretary-generally showed his concern that the region is not secure because of Cambodia’s launch of rockets?”

Surin was not properly fulfilling his “very neutral” role as secretary-general, Hun Sen said.

Cambodia and Thailand remain at odds over a small strip of frontier west of Preah Vihear temple, where nearby the Thai military ran its own exercises last year. Thai officials were forced to apologize for the exercise after shells fell on Cambodian territory and fighter planes crossed Cambodian air space.

Cambodian officials have denied Thursday’s exercise was a show of force in the standoff.

On Sunday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent an official letter to Surin, chastising him for remarks that could “bring about a bad image” to another Asean country.

“Normally, and in principle, an Asean secretary-general should exercise some self-restraint,” Foreign Minister Hor Namhong wrote.

Asean Fears Cambodia May Send Wrong Signal [-Did Cambodia fall into another PR trap by Thailand?]

Surin Pitsuwan (Photo: AFP)

BANGKOK, March 5 (Bernama) -- Asean fears that Cambodia may send a wrong signal to the world when that country conducted multiple rocket test yesterday in the wake of its cold relations with Thailand.

Asean Secretary-General Dr Surin Pitsuwan said today that Cambodia might have signaled as though the region was unstable.

"We are very concerned with such development," he told Bernama after attending the International Conference on Changing Global Landscape and its Implications on Regional Architecture, at the Bangkok Convention Centre here.

Asked whether Asean considered the test as an act of provocation by Cambodia, he said: "I have no details. I have to look into the details first."

Cambodia fired about 200 rounds from the Soviet-made BM21 rocket launcher in the mountains of remote Kampong Chhnang province, about 80km north of Phnom Penh and hit target within a range of 20km to 40km.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen was reported as saying that the exercise was to prepare for the defence of his country and not about showing any military capabilities even though Cambodia and Thailand were at loggerheads.

Thailand Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said yesterday that Thailand had no problem with the exercise as it was a normal practice for a country to conduct military exercises.

Thailand and Cambodia have long outstanding border claims over an area surrounding an ancient Hindu temple, known as Preah Viher in Cambodia and as Phra Viharn in Thailand, which was named a World Heritage Site by Unesco.

The world court ruled in 1962 that the temple belonged to Cambodia but it did not touch on the disputed surrounding area.

Thai-Cambodian relations took a nose dive when Cambodia named fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra as its economic advisor late last year and refused to extradite him to Thailand despite requests.

Thaksin was reported to be living in self-exile in Dubai to avoid a two-year jail term for corruption.

Cambodia flexes muscles with rocket test

Mar 05, 2010
Agencies

PONGROR - Cambodia successfully tested a multiple rocket launcher yesterday in a show of force that comes amid simmering tensions with its neighbour Thailand.

Some 200 rounds from the Soviet-made, BM-21 rocket launcher were fired in the mountains of remote Kampong Chhnang province, some 80km north of the capital Phnom Penh.

"This is a normal drill and preparation to defend the nation in case there is an invasion," Prime Minister Hun Sen said.

He has recently made a number of fiery speeches railing against Thai "invaders" and "thieves" in disputed territory around an 11th century temple on Cambodia's border with Thailand, where there have been deadly clashes in the past two years.

But Thailand's government downplayed the Cambodian drill and said there had been no troop reinforcements in the area.

"I don't think Cambodia wants to intimidate us, as we have sent them a clear signal that we don't want the dispute to go out of control," Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Suthep Thaugsuban, said.

Military Makes Mighty Show of Rockets [-Several hundreds of thousands dollar rockets just for a show?]

Cambodian soldiers test fire multiple rocket launchers (BM21) at the air field in Kampong Chhnang province

By Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer
Original report from Kampong Chhnang
04 March 2010

It was as though lightning leapt from the rocket barrels. Fifteen trucks firing multiple rockets each, nearly 200 all, in a military exercise in Kampong Chhnang province early Thursday morning that officials insisted was not a show of force.

Rows of trucks were parked at the province’s giant, dusty airstrip, launching 122-mm rockets over the rice fields and palm trees and across the plains. The shots came first in a trickle, as single rockets were fired for aim, and then in a roaring flood, as armed crews behind embankments fired for effect.

Formations of soldiers, military police and other forces applauded and distant booms drifted in from impact zones up to 40 kilometers away.

“They hit the target,” a jovial Defense Minister Tea Banh reported after the exercise, addressing a crowd of reporters from the shade of camouflage netting. The rockets all landed within a 1.6 square kilometer area, he said.

The military exercise was the first of its kind since the end of Cambodia’s wars more than a decade ago and came as Cambodian and Thai troops are engaged in a tense standoff along the border near Preah Vihear temple.

Tea Banh said the exercise had nothing to do with Thailand, a statement echoed by Prime Minister Hun Sen, who was not present at the airport Thursday.

“I have to confirm that this is not to show off military muscle,” Hun Sen told a ceremony in Phnom Penh. “This is a normal military exercise, and this is us preparing ourselves to defend the nation in case of invasion.”

Cambodia has used the BM-21 multi-barreled rocket launchers, also known as Stalin’s Organs, since it began purchasing them from Russia in the 1980s.

Hun Sen said Thursday that military experts would evaluate the rockets’ ability to “hit and destroy” their targets.

PM says firing of rockets isn’t show of force

Thursday, 04 March 2010
Cheang sokha and David Boyle
The Phnom Penh Post

THE Royal Cambodian Armed Forces plans to test-fire 200 BM-21 rockets today in Kampong Chhnang province, a move Prime Minister Hun Sen has described as a normal part of military exercises, but which some observers say could be a show of force directed at Thailand.

Minister of Defence Tea Banh will oversee today’s exercise, ministry spokesman Chhum Socheat said Wednesday, adding that officials were looking to determine whether the Russian rockets are still operational.

“We’ve kept them too long. But these weapons were used many times during the Khmer Rouge period,” Chhum Socheat said.

Hun Sen announced the tests during a speech late last month, during which he sought to pre-empt speculation that the move had anything to do with the ongoing border row with Thailand.

“We are not flexing our muscles – this is work to strengthen the abilities of the military in national defence,” Hun Sen said on February 24.

However, Ou Virak, president of the Cambodian Centre for Human Rights, said Wednesday he suspected that muscle-flexing was exactly what the government had in mind.

“I think it’s very irresponsible because of the attention we have at the border,” he said, referring to the dispute over land surrounding Preah Vihear temple that intensified after Cambodia’s application to register the ruins as a World Heritage site was approved in July 2008.

“It is probably more the case that this is more about the border conflict.”

He added that he believed the exercises were more likely designed to stir up domestic support for the government rather than to intimidate Thailand.

Thai government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn declined to comment beyond saying that he hoped Cambodian military officials would keep their Thai counterparts sufficiently informed.

“We have no comment, but we hope that the local military officials have been in contact with each other. That is the normal procedure,” Panitan said.

Cambodian rocket test firing is Cambodian internal affair: Thai PM

BANGKOK, March 4 (TNA, Agencies) - Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva on Thursday said the test of a multiple-military rocket launcher in Cambodia an internal concern of the government in Phnom Penh and that Thailand has no problem with the test.

The Cambodian defence minister said some 200 projectiles from the Russian-made BM-21 rocket launcher were fired in the mountains of remote Kampong Chhnang province, some 50 miles (80 km) north of the capital Phnom Penh.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen was quoted by international media as saying that the exercise was "not about showing any military muscle", even though he is at loggerheads with the Thai government, but said it was to prepare for the defence of his country.

Mr Abhisit said the planned exercise was notified in advance and he has discussed the matter with Thailand's top military brass.

"I don't believe the test is intended to threaten the Thai military as I understand that it is a normal military exercise," Mr Abhisit said, stating that the Cambodian military drill was unrelated to the current political situation in Thailand.

Relations between Thailand and Cambodia have worsened since the Cambodian prime minister appointed Thailand's ousted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra as an economic adviser last year and refused to extradite him to Thailand to serve his two-year jail term for violating the law on conflict of interest.

The anti-government "Red Shirts" led by the pro-Thaksin United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) announced a planned mass rally in Bangkok on March 14 to protest what they accused of a double standard in Thailand's judiciary.

Thailand's Supreme Court ruled last Friday that Mr Thaksin had illegally concealed his ownership of stock in Shin Corp, the family's telecommunications empire, and abused his authority during his two terms in office, from 2001-2006, to benefit Shin Corp businesses.

The Court also ordered the seizure of Bt46.373 billion (US$1.4 billion) out of Bt76.6 billion ($2.29 billion) in frozen assets of the Shinawatra family.

Abhisit downplays Cambodian rocket test

Thursday, March 04, 2010
The Nation

Prime Minster Abhisit Vejjajiva Thursday downplayed Cambodian rocket test saying Thailand has no problem with the exercise as it is a domestic affairs although diplomatic relations between the two countries remain sour.

"I have already talked with our military commanders before the Cambodian rocket test and they know the situation very well," Abhisit told reporters.

"Military exercise is a normal practice. We also have our own drill recently."

Some 200 rounds from the Soviet-made, BM21 rocket launcher were fired in the mountains of remote Kampong Chhnang province, some 80 kilometres north of the capital Phnom Penh.

Cambodian military tests rockets

Cambodian soldiers test fire multiple rocket launchers (BM21) at the air field in Kampong Chhnang province
Cambodian soldiers prepare to test-fire a multiple rocket launcher
Cambodian troops fired some 200 rockets in their first public drill since the country's civil war ended

Thursday, March 04, 2010
By Suy Se (AFP)

KAMPONG CHHNANG, Cambodia — Cambodia's military mounted a rare public test of rockets on Thursday amid a lingering troop standoff over disputed territory with neighbouring Thailand.

In their first public drill since the country's civil war ended more than a decade ago, troops fired some 200 rockets from truck-mounted launchers at an airfield 180 kilometres (about 110 miles) from the Thai border.

Cambodian defence ministry spokesman Chhum Socheat told AFP the display was "not about flexing our muscles" against Thailand.

"The drill is not a threat or a show of force against neigbouring countries or foreign countries," Chhum Socheat said before the rockets were fired in front of assembled media and top brass.

Muffled thumps could be heard as salvos of rockets landed far from the launch site.

"It is about the strengthening of the abilities of our forces in order to fulfil the duties of national defence against invaders," Chhum Socheat added.

Prime Minister Hun Sen declared in a speech last week the rockets would be fired to gauge the quality of the Russian and Chinese-made Cold War-era weapons which have long lain unused in warehouses.

Cambodia and Thailand have been locked in nationalist tensions and a troop standoff at their disputed border since July 2008, when Cambodia's 11th century Preah Vihear temple was granted UNESCO World Heritage status.

Four soldiers were killed in clashes in the temple area in 2008 and three more in a gunbattle last April. Smaller flare-ups continue to be reported between troops in the area.

The Thai-Cambodia border has never been fully demarcated, partly because it is littered with landmines left over from decades of war in Cambodia, which ended in 1998.

The World Court ruled in 1962 that the temple belonged to Cambodia, although its main entrance lies in Thailand. The exact boundary through the surrounding grounds remains in dispute.

Relations plunged further in November after Hun Sen appointed ousted Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra as his economic adviser and then refused to extradite him to Thailand, which he fled to avoid a jail term for corruption.

Thailand's government downplayed the Cambodian rocket drill and said there had been no troop reinforcements on the disputed border.

"I don't think Cambodia wants to intimidate us, as we have sent them a clear signal that we don't want the dispute to go out of control and affect people in both countries," deputy Thai prime minister Suthep Thaugsuban said.

Thai government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn said the drill was "nothing to do with us, they are not firing into our territory."