Thursday, December 22, 2011

Thailand, Cambodia agree on troop withdrawal [-More delays ahead???]

21 Dec 2011
AFP News

Thailand and Cambodia said they agreed Wednesday to redeploy troops "completely and simultaneously" from a shared border area that has been the scene of deadly clashes.

The neighbours' defence ministers and army chiefs agreed to redeploy troops away from the disputed area near an ancient temple, where bloody spats have broken out twice this year, killing 28 people.

They agreed to set up a working group on "redeployment of their military personnel completely and simultaneously from their current positions in the provisional demilitarised zone at the earliest," said a joint statement released after the meeting.


The withdrawal should be organised in the presence of observers from Indonesia, it said.

In February, 10 people were killed in fighting at the Preah Vihear temple site and fresh clashes broke out further west in April, leaving 18 dead.

Tensions have eased since Thailand's new premier Yingluck Shinawatra came to power in August. Her brother, fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, is a friend and former economics adviser of Cambodian premier Hun Sen.

The Hague-based International Court of Justice in July asked both nations to withdraw military personnel from around the temple complex, but neither side has pulled out yet, though the border has been calm.

Thailand does not dispute Cambodia's ownership of Preah Vihear, but both sides claim a 4.6-square-kilometre (1.8-square-mile) area of adjacent land.

1 comment:

  1. Anonymous2:24 AM

    The Siem thuggish leaders always forward their argument that the temple can only be accessible through Thailand as if the temple already belongs to them! In fact the Temple can be accessed from all direction including by helicopter! ahhahahhaha

    The other argument is the Siem thuggish leaders always disagree with the French map when Cambodia became French Protectorate! The issue of the map is the issue between the Siem thuggish leaders and the French leaders! Cambodian leaders did not draw the map! So for the Siem thuggish leaders to disagree about the use of map with Cambodian leaders is baseless! Because if the Siem thuggish leaders have any disagreement with the fucken map and they should have the fucken disagreement with the French leaders long time ago but why now! So now what! These fucken Siem thuggish leaders choose to use military mean over political mean to invade Cambodia to have what they want? Fuck them for being a bully!

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