Thailand seeks neutral venue for border talks with Cambodia
BANGKOK – Thailand has requested Cambodia to move a bilateral meeting of senior security officials next week – considered crucial to de-escalating border tensions following deadly clashes – from Phnom Penh to a neutral location.
Bangkok has proposed shifting the Aug 4 General Border Committee meeting, agreed by the leaders of the two countries, to a city in Malaysia. The request was made by Thailand's Acting Defence Minister Nattaphon Narkphanit, in a letter dated July 31, to his Cambodian counterpart, citing 'the sensitive nature of the situation'.
Malaysia, which hosted ceasefire talks between the two nation's leaders earlier this week, is ready to host the meeting as the current chair of the Asean, Mr Nattaphon said.
Cambodia's Defence Ministry spokesperson Maly Socheata didn't immediately respond to a request for comments.
Despite agreeing to an unconditional ceasefire, the two countries have continued to exchange accusations of unprovoked aggression.
The five-day conflict resulted in over 40 deaths and displaced around 300,000 people along their roughly 800km border. The truce was brokered by Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, acting as Asean chair, and followed pressure from US President Donald Trump.
'This upcoming session is of an extraordinary nature' as it will provide the two sides an opportunity to jointly explore a way forward in de-escalating tensions and resolving the border security issues, Mr Nattaphon said. He also asked that the meeting be extended to Aug 7 to provide more time for discussions due to 'the number and gravity of issues to be addressed.'
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The General Border Committee is one of several bilateral mechanisms established by Thailand and Cambodia to address border matters. The countries take turns hosting the meetings, and it is currently Cambodia's turn to do so.
The Thai army has established an interim team of observers, including military attachés from Asean member states, to monitor the ceasefire, according to a statement. The group also discussed the possible establishment of a broader Asean monitoring mechanism, which will be addressed at the Thai-Cambodia meeting next week, the army said. Bloomberg
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