Press Release Outcome of the First Meeting of the Cambodia-T​hailand Joint Working Group (JWG)

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Press Release

Outcome of the First Meeting of the Cambodia-Thailand Joint Working Group (JWG)

for the implementation of the ICJ’s order for provisional measures dated 18 July 2011

on 03-05 April 2012 in Bangkok, Thailand

The Cambodia Joint Working Group representing the Royal Government of Cambodia, lead by General Neang Phat, Secretary of State, Ministry of National Defense and Chairman of the JWG for the implementation of the ICJ’s order for provisional measures dated 18 July 2011 accompanied by representatives from the Office of the Council of Ministers, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Ministry of National Defense, Ministry of Interior, Border Committee, Governor of Preah Vihear Province, Commander of Military Region 4, Commander of Intervention Division 3, representative from National Police held the first meeting of the Cambodia-Thailand Joint Working Group on 04 April 2012 at Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters with the following outcomes:

1. Both sides reaffirm their commitment to implementing the ICJ’s order dated 18 July 2011.
2. The Joint Working Group commits to implement the outcomes of the 8th General Border Committee (GBC) dated 21st December 2011 relating to the principles of redeployment of military personnel from Provisional Demilitarized Zone (PDZ) and invites the Indonesian Observers in line with the principle contained in the draft Terms of Reference (TOR) initiated by Indonesia.
3. Both sides agreed to continue discussion on the principle of redeployment of military personnel from the PDZ and invite the joint observers (Cambodia-Thailand-Indonesia) at the next meeting of JWG in Cambodia.
4. Both sides agreed to appoint the Liaison Officers (LO) for the JWG and encourage the existing mechanism to continue their coordination activities as Cambodia has already established which is the Coordination Team for Indonesian Cease Fire Observer Team (IOT-C).
5. The Joint Working Group represented by the Army of the two countries agreed to jointly identify and determine the points A, B, C and D in respect to ICJ’s Order and at the same time of instructing the respective technical demining teams to work on the technical task.
6. The Cambodia-Thailand Joint Working Group are in line with paragraph 69 (B) (4) of the ICJ’s Order and reaffirm their commitment to maintain and promote long-standing peaceful co-existence between the people of the two countries and to prevent any activities of extremists who use religion or nationalism as a tools to create tensions or confusions in the Provisional Demilitarized Zone (PDZ).
7. Both sides allow each of the Joint Working Group of the respective countries to report the outcomes of the JWG meeting directly to GBC and subsequently for Cambodia will be reported to Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation for its action to inform the ICJ.
8. Cambodia-Thailand Joint Working Group commits to comply with international law for the principle of long-standing peace, co-existence and security in ASEAN community.

Cambodian Military Announces Ceasefire Plan

This three year old girl , Cha Sith, was injured during the shelling. (Photo: by Heng Reaksmey)

Reporters, VOA Khmer
Oddar Meanchey and Phnom Penh Thursday, 28 April 2011

“Then an artillery shell hit the village and injured my hands.”

Cambodian officials said Thursday military commanders had agreed to a ceasefire, following a meeting on the border in Oddar Meanchey province, the site of heavy fighting this week.

The proposed ceasefire was announced Thursday afternoon by the Cambodian Defense Ministry following meetings between Cambodian general Chea Mon and Thai general Thawatchai Samutsakorn.

The military commanders met at the O’smach border checkpoint following the seventh straight day of fighting that has killed at least 14 people and sent tens of thousands fleeing their homes on both sides.

In Thailand, officials were careful not to announce an official ceasefire.

Thai Protester Demands ‘Impossible’: Government

Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer
Phnom Penh Wednesday, 26 January 2011

Koy Kuong, a spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, called the demands unacceptable. The 2000 agreement is aimed at benefitting both countries, and it is “impossible” to remove Cambodians from areas where they “are living on their own territory,” he said.

The Cambodian government on Wednesday issued a strong rebuke of the Thai “yellow shirt” protest movement, which has called for the annulment of border agreements and the ejection of Cambodians from land along the border.

Thai supporters of the People’s Alliance for Democracy have been up in arms since the arrest of seven Thais in December, five of whom were found guilty of illegally entering the country on Friday and two of whom still face more serious espionage charges.

Thailand, Cambodia to Hold Border Talk in Hanoi: Thai PM

2010-10-05
Xinhua

Thailand and Cambodia will hold talks on the disputed border area on the sidelines of the 17th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Hanoi late this month, Thai media on Tuesday quoted Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva as saying.

According to MCOT news online, Abhisit said he had met his Cambodian counterpart Hun Sen on the sidelines of the 8th Asia- Europe Meeting (ASEM) summit, being held in Brussels during October 4-5, and discussed with him the border dispute over the 4.6-square-km area near an ancient temple Preah Vihear.

"There is no conclusion in the latest discussion which has mainly exchanged views over the dispute in an effort to press ahead for progress in tackling the issue apart from current efforts being made through parliamentary procedures and the Thai- Cambodian Joint Commission on Demarcation for Land Boundary (JBC), " he said.

The prime minister said the two countries would prepare information related to the conflicts and would hold talks again when they meet on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit in Hanoi, the Vietnamese capital, on Oct 28-30.

Regarding concerns over encroachment in overlapping areas, Abhisit conceded that there were some groups of people in both countries wanted to deal with the issue in an aggressive way, which may lead to clashes. Their leaders are duty-bound to reach better understanding among their peoples to prevent violence.

Thailand and Cambodia have age-old dispute over the 900-year- old Hindu Preah Vihear Temple, a World's Heritage site, and its adjacent area of 4.6 sq.km.

The international court ruled the temple belonging to Cambodia more than 40 years ago, but border dispute over the area around the temple has remained a fuse in the two countries' relationship.

The bilateral relationship between the two countries was strained as Cambodian government filed a management plan for the Preah Vihear temple to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), which was supposed to be discussed on the World Heritage Committee's 34th annual meeting in July.

On the meeting in Brasilia, the Thai delegation said the layout of the plan enclosed with the document did not clearly specify the area and apparently violated the Thai border.

World Heritage Committee (WHC) on July 30 decided to postpone the discussion on Cambodia's management plan to its meeting next year in Bahrain.

Hun Xen: "The Khmers never demand [for the return] of Khmer lands which were lost in the past" (sic!)

Important quotes from Hun Xen during his visit to Battalion 41

09 Feb 2010
DAP news
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

Hun Xen ended his speech at 10:03 AM. Here are some of the quotes from his speech.

- Cambodian kings are very good at building. They never stole anybody’s land, but it was the others who came to rob from Khmer kings. The Khmers never demand [for the return] of Khmer lands which were lost in the past.
- Cambodia claims that Wat Keo Sekha Kiri Svarak belongs to Cambodia, it is inside Khmer territories.
- You have guns, so do I. You want to negotiate, I will also negotiate.
- This land, it was not you who occupied it since time immemorial.
- The 10 Thai soldiers will not be authorized to sleep at Wat Keo Sekha Kiri Svarak at night. In the daytime, they can come in, but they are not allowed to carry weapons.
- And, if necessary, Cambodia will report to the UN Security Council.
- Right now, Cambodia will restart the border resolution at The Hague International Court of Justice.
- Cambodia does not recognize the 4.6-sq-km unilateral map that you drew to steal Cambodian territories, and Cambodia does absolutely not recognize this map.

Hun Sen told all the troops stationed there to be brave in the fight against the invading enemy because, right now, we have sufficient armaments to fight the enemy.

Laos first stop as P Penh goes complaining

Monday January 11, 2010
Saritdet Marukatat
Bangkok Post
COMMENTARY

A small story sometimes has big implications. What is happening between Cambodia and Laos nicely fits this definition.

Cambodian Deputy Foreign Minister Long Visalo went to Vientiane last Tuesday. His mission to the northern neighbour was clear. The Cambodian government wanted to brief Laos about its dispute with Thailand.

In the Laotian capital, Long Visalo lectured some 200 Lao Foreign Ministry officials on the history of Preah Vihear, the ruling by the International Court of Justice in 1962 that the Hindu temple belonged to his country, as well as Cambodia's right to list it as a World Heritage Site under the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation in July 2008.

The Cambodian deputy minister also told his hosts about the border dispute between his country and Thailand, which started after the latter country made a U-turn on its previous stance which had been in support of Cambodia's attempt to list Preah Vihear as a World Heritage Site.

The Cambodian campaign cannot be seen as anything but the start of its efforts to drum up backing from other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to help sort out the border conflict with Thailand for good.

And Laos will not be the only stop in this tactic. On the list, of course, are Burma and Vietnam (the latter is scheduled to take the Asean chair till December).

Phnom Penh's strategy is to turn the dispute over the overlapping land boundary of 4.6 square kilometres into a regional issue by trying to bring in the involvement of other Asean members.

Thailand thinks otherwise, with its intention to keep the matter as a quarrel between two neighbours which should be settled by the two neighbours only.

The more countries jumping in, the more difficult it will be to resolve the problem.

The talks in Vientiane did not cover the issue of ousted Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra - at least as far as the information made public shows.

But then again, the Thaksin issue is not a main factor at all for Cambodia.

Ending Thaksin's role as an economic adviser to Phnom Penh is Bangkok's condition for diplomatic normalisation with Cambodia. No country can stand seeing its citizen, who has been sentenced to jail, given recognition by another government.

But for Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, the root cause goes beyond last year when he added Thaksin to the long list of advisers to his government. It began right there on the border between Cambodia' Preah Vihear province and Kantaralak district in Si Sa Ket province.

The whole issue is about the temple and the land dispute in that area.

"You raise the issue of Thaksin, but you forget the issue of Preah Vihear," Hun Sen said in October, during one of his verbal onslaughts on Thailand.

It is not difficult for anybody to guess that there is no way in sight for the two countries to end the sour ties, given their vastly different positions which are beyond the reach of a compromise. But, as Asean members, they cannot leave relations festering this way, either. Other countries view what is happening between Thailand and Cambodia as an obstruction to Asean's attempts to bring unity into the club which, five years from now, is to become one single community. However, what can other Asean countries do but watch and hope that there will be a miracle to end the two neighbours' quarrel?

Another worry from the Thai-Cambodian spat is that it could spill over to poison ties between Thailand and other members in Asean who are very close to Cambodia. One of them is Laos. The history of their jungle warfare to drive out, first the colonialists and then the Western-supported governments, has made Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam brothers, who also have same positions on issues in Asean. As countries with Thailand as their immediate common neighbour, Cambodia and Laos have long been aware of the rising Thai influence in their country.

So far there are no problems in the relations between Thailand and Laos. But that does not mean everything will go smoothly. Problems still exist but they have been swept under the carpet by Vientiane over the past years because it needed help from Thailand to host the SEA Games last year.

Now the Games are over. Now the Cambodian deputy minister has visited Vientiane. And now the story of Thai-Laos relations in the post-SEA Games era begins.

Saritdet Marukatat is News Editor, Bangkok Post.

Cambodia-Thailand seek arbitration in land dispute [-Cambodia should have done this long ago!]

2009-10-12
Associated Press

Cambodia said Monday it will ask Southeast Asian leaders at an upcoming summit to help resolve a heated border dispute with Thailand that has sparked gun battles, protests and fears of a cross-border war.

Foreign Minister Hor Namhong said in a statement he backed a proposal by his Thai counterpart that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations set up an arbitration body to help resolve dueling claims to land near the 11th century Preah Vihear temple.

ASEAN leaders meet Oct. 23-25 in Thailand for the 10-nation bloc's annual summit.

Preah Vihear temple sits on a cliff in a disputed border zone between Thailand and Cambodia. It has been a source of tension and fueled nationalist sentiment on both sides of the border for decades.

Last year, UNESCO backed Cambodia's bid to list the temple as a world heritage site. Thailand initially supported the bid but then reneged after the move sparked outrage and protests. Some Thais worried that the distinction would undermine their claims to surrounding land.

Both sides rushed troops to the border, which resulted in several small gun battles and briefly sparked concerns of war.

In 1962, the World Court awarded the temple to Cambodia, but sovereignty over adjacent areas has never been clearly resolved.

Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen warned last month that anyone who illegally enters Cambodian territory near the temple will be shot.

Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said last week that he would seek approval at the ASEAN summit for the establishment of a neutral organization to settle disputes among members.

"This may provide an avenue for Thailand and Cambodia to settle the (Preah Vihear) dispute," he said.

Hor Namhong responded Monday, saying the issue is one of regional concern.

"I would like to propose that the dispute between Cambodia and Thailand in the area of the temple of Preah Vihear be included in the agenda of the ASEAN summit," he said in a statement sent to Kasit.

The two countries share a 500-mile (800-kilometer) land border, much of which has never been clearly demarcated because the countries refer to different maps.

Abhisit insists on bilateral talks to resolve border dispute with Cambodia ... he refuses to take issue to ASEAN or UN Security Council: Why?

Bilateral talks are the way : PM

October 1, 2009
The Nation

Refuses to take issue to Asean or UN Security Council

The dispute with Cambodia over land near the Preah Vihear temple must be solved bilaterally by the joint boundary commission, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said yesterday - rejecting any move to raise the issue at international forums.

The Thai-Cambodian Joint Commission on Demarcation for Land Boundary (JBC) has been negotiating boundary demarcation in the area.

"We refer to the memorandum of understanding signed in 2000 not to make any changes before completion of the boundary demarcation," he said.

"The best way [for now] is to prevent clashes along the border."

The disputed area near the Hindu Khmer temple of Preah Vihear has been a source of conflict between Thailand and Cambodia for a long time. It heated up when the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), which has ties to the government, rallied in Si Sa Ket on September 19. The PAD mob demanded that Cambodians be removed from the disputed area.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen hit back on Monday, warned that troops would "shoot to kill" any trespassers who entered land he deemed Cambodian territory.

Some 4.6 square kilometres near the Preah Vihear temple is claimed by both countries. The JBC demarcation process requires approval by the Thai Parliament.

Prime Minister Hun Sen vowed to raise the issue with Asean and the United Nations Security Council if the dispute was not settled soon.

Abhisit said the issue could be resolved at a bilateral level and not be put to Asean.

"We are very cautious about the Cambodian move to raise the issue to international level," he said.

Defence Ministry Permanent Secretary General Apichart Penkitti said the two countries should resolve the dispute peacefully. "If the military takes action, it could be worse. The best solution is negotiation," he said.

"Of course, we don't want to lose the territory but force cannot solve the problem. As both sides claim the same area, we must sit and talk," the general said.

Meanwhile, the House committee on foreign affairs yesterday urged tolerance over the border dispute, saying the issue should not be used by people who want to sour ties with Cambodia.

The panel said it opposed any use of violence and called for the government to engage in talks with Phnom Penh to avoid armed conflict, according to spokesman Danuporn Punnakanta, an MP from the opposition Pheu Thai Party.

Deputy panel spokesman, Democrat MP Ratchada Thanadirek, said bilateral talks on border demarcation had made much progress, but more work was needed in the long term, possibly over the next decade.

She called on the government not to respond negatively to aggressive comments from the Cambodian prime minister, saying it would worsen the dispute.

Life's tough for the Siamese invading troops

Life's tough for troops at border

Dug in between Cambodian forces and a planned PAD rally, the tension is mounting

19/09/2009
Thanida Tansubhapol in Si Sa Ket
Bangkok Post

"If they fire at us, we'll have to duck behind the rocks and fire back at them," said a soldier stationed near Wat Kaew Sikha Khiri in the disputed area near Preah Vihear temple.

Life is tough for him and his nine comrades these days because they are being pressured by Cambodian soldiers based not far from them.

The pressure will likely increase on Saturday if protesters from the People's Alliance for Democracy rally at the Khao Phra Viharn National Park, on the Thai border in Kantharalak district, manage to enter the disputed 4.6 square kilometres of land that both Thailand and Cambodia lay claim to.

A military officer said his Cambodian counterparts have asked about the PAD's movements, but the Thai army has consistently tried to downplay the rally's significance, saying it was an internal matter which had nothing to do with Cambodia.

"We hope the level of severity will not be elevated," he said.

The PAD said the construction of new houses, roads and temples on the Cambodian side showed Thailand is losing sovereignty of the area.

However, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has consistently denied the yellow shirts' claims that the government has turned a blind eye to recent developments in the overlapping area.

The military and security agencies are concerned that tensions along the border could increase as a result of the PAD rally.

Troops are already on tenterhooks around Wat Kaew Sikha Khiri where Thai and Cambodian soldiers are positioned just 40 metres from each other, though they converse and share food.

The officer said the Cambodian government was actively encouraging people to come to Wat Kaew Sikha Khiri every day to offer food to monks, and they would use the road that has just been built from Ban Ko Mui in Preah Vihear province.

Many Cambodian soldiers have also brought their families to settle near the area.

He ruled out fighting as an option to solve the matter.

If all sides are patient and engage in meaningful negotiations the situation will return to normal, he said, adding that the return of tourists to the area would be a win-win situation for the two countries.

Khmer PM urges Thai troop withdrawal

Thu, July 2, 2009
By Supalak Ganjanakhundee
The Nation

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has urged Thailand to withdraw its 30 troops stationed around Preah Vihear Temple, to defuse the stand-off at the border.

Hun Sen said he told Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaug-suban during his visit to Phnom Penh last week that the Thai side must not fly military aircraft over Cambodian territory.

He told Suthep that Cambodian forces had recently been equipped with modern ground-to-air missiles, China's official Xinhua News Agency reported.

Second Army Area commander Lt-General Wiboonsak Neeparn said he contacted his Cambodian counterpart, Lt-General Chea Mon, to consult with him about troop redeployment.

"If we don't talk to each other, there could be a misunderstanding, due to misinformation," he said.

Thailand has no intention of using force to solve the dispute, he said.

Tensions along the border near Preah Vihear have intensified since Thailand maintained its objection to the temple's World Heritage status at the 33rd session of the World Heritage Committee in Spain last month.

The Thai complaint, however, made no difference to the World Heritage Committee, which had decided to list the Khmer sanctuary as a World Heritage Site a year ago.

Its decision issued at its meeting in Spain simply requested that Cambodia submit details of its plan for safeguarding and developing the site by next February 1.

Cambodia was due to submit the details this past February, but Phnom Penh made its first report to the committee in April with some information missing, such as a map delineating the buffer zone around the temple.

However, Natural Resource and Environment Minister Suwit Khunkitti, who attended the meeting in Spain, told local media the committee decided to delay its decision to list Preah Vihear until next February after his heavy lobbying.

Pongpol Adireksarn, former chairman of Thailand's National World Heritage Committee, accused Suwit of twisting the Spanish meeting's decision.

The committee has agreed to extend the time frame for the site-management plan because Cambodia has not yet submitted sufficient documentation, not because of any objections from Thailand, he said.

Thai and Cambodia talk substantive : Thai FM Kasit

Mon, January 26, 2009
The Nation

Phnom Penh—Thailand and Cambodia this morning have "substantive" bilateral talks covering issues related to Thai-Cambodian border issues, trade and tourism cooperation.

Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya told a press conference that both sides agreed to settle their mutual problems with peaceful means and in brotherly ways. "We have political will and commonalities to move forward for the well beings of both peoples," Kasit said.

In the same press conference, Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong said that Thai Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwan will make an official visit to Cambodian early next month to discuss the border situation, which has been calm followed weeks of tensions in November 2008. Top on the agenda will be troop adjustments along the Thai-Cambodian border.

A new round of discussion by Joint Border Commission to discuss the overlapping areas has been also scheduled for early next month. There are a total of 73 demarcation posts along the Thai-Cambodian border, only 48 posts have been located.

Both countries also decided to resume negotiations on the maritime demarcation line covering 20,600 square meters which are rich in natural gas and oil. A memorandum of understanding was signed between the two countries in 2000 to discuss the overlapping maritime zones. But several subsequent negotiations have stalled.

The resumption of maritime overlapping areas has been welcome by both sides. As part of the upcoming negotiations, Thailand awaits a Cabinet approval on the key person who will be in charge of maritime negotiations.

Both leaders also discussed ways to boost tourism in their countries. They agreed that foreign visitors with a visa to visit a member of Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy would be able to visit other members.

Kasit pledged to follow up on Thailand's agreement to return the Cambodian ancient artifacts as soon as possible. At the moment, Ministry of Cultural Affairs is processing the return.

Before the plenary session, which last one hour, Kasit and Namhong had a 45 minutes four eyes meeting, 35 minutes longer than scheduled.

During Kasit's courtesy call on Samdech Akka Moha Thamma Pothisal Chea Sim, president of the Senate, both leaders agreed to exchange parliamentarian delegations as well as the cooperation between Democrat Party and Cambodian People's Party.

Kasit is having an audience with Cambodian King Norodom Sihanoumi this afternoon followed by a lunch hosted by Namhong in his honour.

Minister: Cambodia-Thailand trade to be normal soon [-Cham Prasidh admits Cambodia's dependence on Thai products]

PHNOM PENH, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian Commerce Minister Cham Prasidh said Sunday that the trade between Cambodia and Thailand would be normal soon after a deadly clash at the border.

The armed clash did not impact the economic field for both sides, Cham Prasidh told reporters at the airport after returning from China.

"It is nearly normal. It was not a war yet," he added.

"The Thai side is not crazy to escape from Cambodian market. Cambodia is a main market for Thai products," he said, adding that Cambodia also can make business with others countries.

The Cambodian government has called for calm following last week's border clash that has resulted in the deaths of three Cambodian soldiers and a Thai trooper.

Regional border committees of Cambodia and Thailand on Friday signed an agreement to ease their months-long tension along the border near the 900-year-old Preah Vihear Temple.

In July, tensions ran high after the Preah Vihear Temple was awarded world heritage status by UNESCO, angering nationalists in Thailand who still claim ownership of the site.

The tension later turned into a military stalemate, in which up to 1,000 Cambodian and Thai troops faced off for several weeks.

UN chief comments Thai-Cambodian conflict [-Somchai to visit Cambodia on 13 Oct]

Tue, September 30, 2008
By Supalak Ganjanakhundee
The Nation

New York - The United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon suggested that the border disputes between Thailand and Cambodia should be settled bilaterally, Foreign Minister Sompong Amornwiwat said Monday.

The UN chief told ministers of both sides while they together with other colleagues from the Asean met with him on the sideline of the UN General Assembly here.

Thailand-Cambodia border conflict was among the issues including the Burma's rehabilitation after Cyclone Nargis discussed between the Asean ministers and Secretary General Ban.

The border conflict came into the UN attention as Phnom Penh wanted to bring the issue to the UN Security Council since July. It was put on hold since both sides have many bilateral mechanisms to handle such conflict.

Prior to the meeting with Ban, Sompong and Cambodian deputy foreign minister Ouch Borith also briefed an informal Asean ministerial meeting on the progress of border dispute settlement. They needed to report Asean since Cambodia put the conflict into the group during the ministerial meeting in Singapore in July. The Asean also told them to solve the problem bilaterally.

The two neighbors have been in conflict since Cambodia managed to list the Hindu temple of Preah Vihear as a world heritage site and angry Thai protesters forced the military to deploy troops to stand off with Cambodia since July.

Previous government negotiated to redeploy troops in the areas to only ten each of both sides in the dispute areas and remained some 20 each nearby.

Sompong said the UN chief and Asean ministers agreed the bilateral mechanisms could end the conflict although it would take time.

"We told the Asean ministers that there is no longer confrontation since previous negotiations manage to reduce number of troops," he said.

The minister said he would visit Cambodia shortly after the parliament session for policy announcement which due October 7-8.

"I intend to visit Phnom Penh around the same time with Laos to pave the way for Prime Minister's visit in coming weeks," Sompong told reporters.

Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat would visit Cambodia on October 13 to discuss the border dispute.

Sompong said his Cambodia colleagues wanted to bring other disputed areas near Ta Muen Thom temple in Oddar Meanchey and Surin provinces into the next discussion. Both sides claimed sovereignty in the border areas where the Khmer sanctuary was situated.

Cambodia has already piled up the third Hindu sanctuary of Ta Kwai Krabey into the pipe line but Thailand has not yet put into the agenda for discussion.