Pull troops or no deal, says Kasit

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Published: 11/05/2011 at 12:00 AM

Newspaper section: News

Thailand has sent a "strong message" reiterating that Cambodia must withdraw its troops from the disputed area around Preah Vihear temple.If Cambodia refuses, then the so-called "package solution" agreed by the foreign ministers of the two countries on Monday in Jakarta will not be put into practice.

Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya, in an interview shortly after arriving at Suvarnabhumi airport from Indonesia yesterday, insisted that the Indonesian observer team would be allowed to be stationed in Thailand only if Cambodia first withdrew its soldiers from the 4.6-square-kilometre disputed area.

Mr Kasit said he and his Cambodian counterpart agreed on the package solution proposed by Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa, who mediated Monday's talks to defuse ongoing border clashes that erupted at the beginning of February.

The solution would allow the deployment of Indonesian observers.

Mr Kasit said under the solution Thailand would exchange the terms of reference (TOR) with Indonesia in the first step but that this would have to be approved by the Thai cabinet next week.

He said if approved, the TOR would first allow Indonesia's survey team to travel to Thailand to talk with the Si Sa Ket governor and survey four locations where observers could be stationed.

Mr Kasit said in the second step the two countries must hold a General Border Committee meeting to discuss Cambodia's troop withdrawal in detail.

"If [Cambodia] refuses to withdraw, the observers can't come," said Mr Kasit.

Thailand had sent protest notes on 13 occasions to Cambodia, the United Nations, Unesco and the World Heritage Committee.

He refuted allegations that Thailand was dragging its feet on the TOR issue by setting the condition that Cambodia must withdraw its troops first.

Mr Kasit said the arrival of the observers amid the presence of Cambodian soldiers in the disputed area would give credence to Cambodia's claims to the land and would be a self-admission by Thailand of the loss of its territory.

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No border talks at Asean

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Published: 6/05/2011 at 04:41 PM

Online news: Local News

JAKARTA - Initial hopes of bilateral talks between Thailand and Cambodia and of trilateral talks with Indonesia as the third party during the Asean Summit have been dashed, with the major obstacle being the issue of troop withdrawal.

However, the Asean chairman, Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa, on Friday reaffirmed that discussions on the Thai-Cambodian border conflict would continue during the Asean Summit in Jakarta this weekend.

Foreign Ministers Kasit Piromya (right) greets his Cambodia counterpart Hor Namhong (left) shortly after a press conference by Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa (centre) on the Informal ASEAN Ministrial Meeting at Indonesian Foreign Ministry office in Jakarta on Feb 22, 2011. (Photo by EPA)

Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya did not speak a single word after his 45 minute meeting with his Indonesian counterpart, but Mr Natalegawa said there was one development came out of his separate talks with the Thai and Cambodian sides here.

Discussions of the terms of reference (TOR) for deployment of the Indonesian observer team could be considered concluded, he said.

"The TOR is already a done deal as the two sides reaffirmed their agreement, but it remains how to operationalise the assignment on the ground of Indonesian observers. We're looking for the creation of conducive conditions," said the Asean chairman.

He noted that as the country sending the observers, he believed it was essential to create conducive conditions and he would try to redefine what each country would provide.

The Indonesian minister said both Thailand and Cambodia had recognised that the political process and diplomatic negotiations must be continued even though Cambodia had taken the dispute back to the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

While acknowledging troop withdrawals as a major stumbling point, he emphasised that the risks inherent in any delay, the very real exchanges of gunfire and artillery bombardment in border areas, continued.

"Delay is not neutral, delay is not without impact. There is greater risk of intentional or inadvertent conflicts," said Mr Natalegawa.

He noted that, modestly but importantly significant, was the fact that observers from the third party could be deployed.

"That's why I'm hesitant to say whether withdrawal or no withdrawal (a conducive condition), but we view that our observers will be well received. In fact, redeployment or withdrawal of troops can be further discussed at the General Border Committee.

"It does not have to be resolved in one go, as long as there is a political will," he said.

Asked if he was disheartened by the apparent impasse, he said he personally he was fine, as he has infinite patience, but as a country and a host of Asean he wanted to see some movement.

"We need some progress as non-development and status quo means shelling and artillery fire is still going on while we're talking about community building — that is not quite right," he said.

Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Thani Thongpakdi said Mr Kasit had told the Asean chairman that Phnom Penh had a well-planned strategy, to begin its invasion and then forward the issue to the ICJ.

Mr Thani confirmed that Thailand had not sent a letter of acknowldgement for the positioning of the Indonesian observer team to Jakarta. Thailand needed first to be confident that Cambodian troops would withdraw from the disputed area around Preah Vihear temple.

The Cambodian military presence inside the perimeter of the cultural hertitage site was in violation of the Hague Convention of 1972, the Thai spokesman said.

He said details of the Indonesian observer team's deployment had already been agreed upon, including the area coverage and timeline.

Cambodia would allow 15 Indonesians at three sites (Ta Sem, Chak Chreng and Pram Makara) while Thailand allow the same number at four sites in Si Sa Ket’s Kantharalak district, at Ban Phumsrol. None of the sites were in the immediate vicinity of the disputed 4.6 square kilometre area around the ancient Hindu temple.

Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Nam Hong earlier today said his country would not withdraw its troops from its "own territory".

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva gives a press interview at Government House on May 6, 2011

Mr Hor Nam Hong said the problem with the border conflict clearly remained the willingness of Thailand to agree with the deployment of Indonesian observers under the TOR.

"Cambodia has already sent a letter of acceptance to Indonesia's proposed TOR on May 2, and we hope will Thailand do likewise," said the Cambodian minister.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said in Bangkok before leaving for Jakarta that he had no plans to meet Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen during the Asean Summit to discuss the border dispute.

Mr Abhisit yesterday said Cambodian troops and villagers must vacate the 4.6-square-kilometre disputed border area around Preah Vihear temple before Indonesia observers can be deployed.

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Revisiting the reign of TERROR

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With the Khmer Rouge trial in progress, a new documentary on Pol Pot's top aide sheds light on Cambodia's dark past

Published: 4/05/2011 at 12:00 AM

Newspaper section: Life

To make a movie about Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge is to hear the cries from the graveyards. To revisit the Pol Pot era, even three decades later, is to walk among the ghosts. And to walk among the ghosts _ especially the Cambodian ghosts now that the word "Cambodia" rings with an awkward tinge to some Thais _ is to remember what makes us not Thai or Cambodian, but human all the same.

Nuon Chea, the Khmer Rouge’s number-two commander, opens up in new documentary, Enemies of the People.

To international viewers, the best-known film about Cambodia and the tragedy of the mid-1970s is The Killing Fields (shot partly in Bangkok itself). But the most chilling and historically valuable account on that subject is not the 1984 Western-produced drama: it is, in 2003, the documentary S21: The Khmer Rouge Killing Machine by Rithy Panh, and now, in 2011, it is another doc Enemies of the People, in which the ghosts walk and talk perhaps in the hope of making themselves heard once again.

Directed by Rob Lemkin and Thet Sambath, Enemies of the People scores an unusual feat and it's scheduled to open in a Bangkok multiplex, on one screen, on May 19. As the border throbs and uncertainty rules relations between Thailand and Cambodia, a re-examination of a bloodied chapter in Khmer history seems not an irrelevant matter; rather it is a lesson for both sides on how madness and violence, how knives and guns and arrogance, can easily spiral out of control and plunge everybody into hell.

"I do this not for journalism," says Thet Sambath, co-director and protagonist of the film, "I do this for history."

Among other things, Enemies of the People is a documentary about an unlikely friendship. In the film, we follow Thet Sambath, a reporter at the Phnom Penh Post, as he recounts the 10 years he's spent researching and getting acquainted with Nuon Chea, a top Khmer Rouge commander who's also known as "Brother Number Two" (in old news footage, Chea is the slightly chubby man who walks right behind Pol Pot everywhere he goes, including on a trip to China).

Now in his 80s, frail yet articulate, Chea is the last surviving Khmer Rouge leader who at this moment _ and this adds another urgency to the film _ awaits UN trial for crimes his regime committed 35 years ago.

Sambath's father, mother and older brother were killed during 1974 to 1977, and for years the young man was consumed by the need to understand why such atrocity, which left two million dead, was even possible (see box). ''I never really understood what happened under the Khmer Rouge. I read history books _ almost all by Westerners _ but it still didn't make sense to me: why were so many people killed?'' Sambath says in a note. ''It could not be just because the Khmer Rouge were 'bad people'.''

In early 2000s, Sambath got to know Nuon Chea, and the bulk of Enemies of the People shows Sambath's weekly trip to visit the old communist at his house _ like a son visiting his grandfather. The irony of life contributes to the accidental drama here: Sambath didn't tell Chea that his family were killed by the Khmer Rouge, and the two men seem to like each other's company enough that Chea allows the journalist to film him. Initially, Sambath didn't dare ask the questions he'd been meaning to ask, while Chea kept saying the usual lines, ''I was low ranking, I'm not a killer''. But slowly, the old Red grew to trust the young man and opens up, and everything is captured on his video camera.

Thet Sambath Rob Lemkin

''One day he said to me 'Sambath, I trust you, you are the person I would like to tell my story to. Ask me what you want to know','' Sambath recalls.

Nuon Chea, tired, regretful and defiant, is not the only subject in Enemies of the People. Throughout the years Sambath also befriended at least two other former Khmer Rouge soldiers, both of them now in their 60s and residing in a village not far from the mass graves where they once buried people. Looking tired and weathered, as if the weight of history has caught up with them, the two soldiers answer Sambath's questions, point him the site where they once killed people, and in one harrowing scene, demonstrate with a knife how they slit a man's throat. Not a single drop of blood is seen, but it's one of the scariest things you'll see on a screen in a long time.

''My sources are country people. The Khmer Rouge were all country people,'' Sambath wrote. ''They don't talk to people from the city, let alone foreigners. I am a country person. I think that's why, in the end, they talked to me. I am one of them.

''In 2005 I started to plan a book. But I worried no one would believe me. So I began tape-recording all my interviews. Then I worried they still might not believe. So, in 2006, I began videotaping my interviews and meetings.'' That same year, Sambath met Rob Lemkin, a documentary filmmaker who visited Phnom Penh, and Enemies of the People was the result of that meeting.

''I see Sambath as a man trying to make sense of the nightmare of his childhood,'' says Lemkin in his notes. ''I also see him as a representative of the Second Generation, working to ferret out the truth from the First Generation, in order to convey the meaning of history to the Third Generation. In this sense this story could be from Germany, South Africa, Northern Ireland, Yugoslavia, Rwanda, Iraq, Sudan.''

A former Khmer Rouge soldier talks about the crimes he’s been living with for three decades

A reconciliation, if not morally then socially at least, is possible only when the wrongdoers confront the wronged. The meeting between the victims of Khmer Rouge ultra-violence and the Khmer Rouge perpetrators was captured in the documentary S21: The Khmer Rouge Killing Machine, a 2003 film that would make a perfect double for Enemies of the People. Made by the Paris-based filmmaker Rithy Panh, who fled Cambodia to France in 1979, S21 revisits Tuol Sleng, the notorious prison in downtown Phnom Penh in which 17,000 people were ''processed'' and ''destroyed'' between 1975 to 1979, sometimes by guards as young as 12.

The movie brought these guards back to the prison, and they were asked to re-enact their routine of torture, abuse and murder _ to the empty cells and invisible prisoners _ but the cold shiver is intensified by the sense of history being relived, the sense of self-exorcism by these men who, either valid or not, also see themselves as helpless victims of a demon that terrorised the nation. In the film, two survivors of the prison meet their tormenters, because pain can probably be cured by confronting pain itself. Panh, perhaps the most well-known Cambodian filmmaker, has just completed a new doc focusing on Duch, the ruthless warden of Tuol Sleng who's also being tried before a UN tribunal.

While S21 has been screened at small conferences and academic seminars, Enemies of the People will open in a cinema at a time when Cambodia is grabbing the headlines of Thai newspapers, though in a different circumstance from the Khmer Rouge and its aftermath.

''First of all, Cambodia is our neighbour, and to learn the history of our neighbour is always important, because that's how we understand them,'' says Pimpaka Towira, whose company Extra Virgin has acquired the rights of the film. ''But also, I think Enemies of the People is a fair portrait; there are no clear bad guys in it. The story in the film can also serve as a lesson on how a conflict can escalate and how ideology can drive you to see whoever thinks differently as your enemies. It fits the situation in Thailand very well.''

Enemies of the People will open on May 19 at SF CentralWorld. The directors, Rob Lemkin and Thet Sambath, will answer audience questions at the 7pm screening.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

AN INTERVIEW WITH DIRECTOR THET SAMBATH

What first drove you to take up this project? You explained in the film, but what really drove you on this mission to find the answer to the question that many people thought was impossible to answer?

After my family were killed, I grew up wondering why all this took place. But everywhere I looked I found accusation and rumour. I don't like rumour. So I resolved to get the story from the people who did it.

Do you think you have found the answer finally? The answer to why the killings took place? Is it very important to you to find out the answer?

Yes, it is important to find out. I think I have found out. But I think it will only come out in our sequel film Suspicious Minds [that he and Lemkin are making].

Your friendship with Nuon and the two killers from the village is the most striking thing. What did it feel like when you genuinely grew close to Chea?

I was surprised that I became close to him like that. But I am a very genuine and sincere person and so I think it was inevitable that so long as he told me the truth that we would become close.

In your view, why did Nuon, Soun and Koun (the two former killers in the village) decide to open up to you and let you film them extensively?

I think I have a way of making people talk to me. Even Nuon Chea and the killers often used to say, "Sambath, I don't know why I am telling you all this."

Has the film been shown in Cambodia? What was the reaction?

The film has been shown at one cinema in Phnom Penh many times. The government does not allow it a wide release. We hope they will change their minds soon. But it's still very controversial history. But for the audiences who have seen it, they have been amazed. They tell me they have been waiting for 30 years for this story to come out.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

AN INTERVIEW WITH DIRECTOR ROB LEMKIN

When did you start collaborating with Sambath?

I first met Sambath in 2006 when I went to make my own film on the Khmer Rouge trial. The Khmer Rouge leader I really wanted to meet was Nuon Chea, but I was told the only person who could really talk to him was Sambath. So I hired Sambath as a fixer/translator but soon I realised the extraordinary relationship between them was the story and that Sambath was already well-advanced on the road of investigation and discovery. I asked him if we could join forces as equal partners. He said yes and we got started.

When you met him in person, what was your impression with Nuon Chea?

I think on one level our film is about the nature and process of research. To get important and secret information from someone who has been denying it for many years involves relating to them in a very human way. By the time the information has been obtained or released, the human aspect of the relationship has already developed irrevocably. There is an interesting tension and contradiction in this.

Why did Nuon Chea decide to open up to Sambath and let you and him film him extensively?

Nuon Chea did not open up in front of me _ this was for Sambath alone. But Nuon Chea was happy to answer our joint questions (put by Sambath when I wasn't there) because he trusted Sambath. I think he believes he has not been treated fairly by historians and journalists, and that he saw in Sambath someone who was prepared to allow him to put his point of view extensively. I think he realised this chance would not come again for him.

Will the film be used as any form of evidence in the upcoming trial?

There has been some controversy over our and the film's relationship with the trial chamber. We declined to give the film to the ECCC (Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia) following requests from the prosecutors' office and the investigating judges. That was because the contributions were given on the basis that we were not officers or agents of the court. However, the court has plenty of opportunity to obtain the film from the public domain now and, according to their own court order of April 9, 2010, it seems they will do so and use it as they see fit in the trial of Nuon Chea and other members of the CPK central committee.

The most well-known film about the Cambodian tragedy was The Killing Fields, and the most well-known documentary on the subject is S-21: The Khmer Rouge Killing Machine. To me, Enemies of the People allows the voices of the killers to be heard. How do you see the role of documentary filmmaking as a tool or journalistic/historical invention?

I think through the power of film storytelling you can connect people and politics, history and emotion that you cannot quite do in any other medium. That is because voiceless people can speak for themselves in a film and become central to the process in a way that is more direct than in a literary work. We are working on a second film Suspicious Minds, and a book, but we see the entirety of our work as part of a much bigger process of Cambodia starting to interrogate its own history. This way we hope the film may be part of a first step towards a genuine truth and reconciliation process.

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Prayuth insists troops must vacate border

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30 monitors to deploy after terms approved

Published: 4/05/2011 at 12:00 AM

Newspaper section: News

The Army chief yesterday reiterated the precondition set out by the army and government that Cambodia withdraw all of its troops from the 4.6 sq km disputed border area before Indonesian observers can be deployed.

"If they [Cambodia] do not agree, the battle will have to continue. We can keep fighting each other or we can end the battle with dialogue," army commander in chief Gen Prayuth Chan-ocha said.

Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya earlier met with Indonesia's foreign minister Marty Natalegawa, who is the current chairman of Asean, to discuss the terms of reference (ToR) for the deployment of 30 Indonesian observers along the Thai-Cambodian border near Preah Vihear temple.

The Foreign Ministry has proposed the ToR to the Cabinet, which it should consider carefully, Gen Prayuth said.

"If those observers were to be deployed, there must be no soldiers on the Preah Vihear mountain. It does not matter who comes in, the government will be the one to approve their presence. But if they want to come, there must be a ToR governing their presence," Gen Prayuth said.

The army chief added that the Foreign Ministry would lobby the Cabinet for approval of the ToR. He has personally gone through essential details of the proposal and insisted it states that there must be no troops present at Preah Vihear Temple in addition to nearby communities and Buddhist temples.

On Monday night, border skirmishes resumed between Thai and Cambodian troops near the Ta Kwai Temple in Tambon Bak Dai in Surin province. One Thai soldier was killed and three others injured.

The latest clash featured fighting with personal rifles, grenade launchers and hand grenades, according to Lt Gen Tawatchai Samutsakhon, commander of the 2nd Army.

About 500 residents of Tambon Bak Dai who had recently returned home again had to flee from their communities to Nikhom Prasat evacuation centre on Monday night.

Eight Thai soldiers have been killed and 120 others injured during the latest and deadliest round of Thai-Cambodian fighting, which started 11 days ago.

Gen Prayuth insisted that Thai troops had never fired first.

Lt Gen Tawatchai said small skirmishes had occurred on a daily basis since a ceasefire was declared last Thursday. The skirmish on Monday night broke out because Cambodian military leaders could not control some of their soldiers. The 2nd Army had tried to prevent further clashes by sending commanding officers to the frontline, so that they could talk to Cambodian military commanders and discuss plans to prevent fburther skirmishes between both sides.

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Thailand is fighting not just a war _ lecturer

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Published: 2/05/2011 at 12:00 AM

Newspaper section: News

The Thai-Cambodian border skirmishes will be protracted, predicts Rajabhat University academic Boonrueng Katchama in Surin, the scene of the latest clashes.

Mr Boonrueng tells KING-OUA LAOHONG that the border conflict is unlikely to end any time soon because it is not a mere two-country affair.

Do you think any talks between 2nd Army commander Lt Gen Thawatchai Samutsakorn and Cambodia's Lt Gen Chea Mon, chief of the Cambodian 4th Region Army are likely to result in a ceasefire agreement?

Boonrueng: Battling vested interests

A truce in the next couple of months will be hard to achieve. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen wants any talks to resolve the border conflict to be mediated by a third country.

He wants to include territorial disputes over the Ta Kwai and Ta Muen Thom temples in the wider process to settle the conflict.

This is to gain an upper hand in the process. But the whole issue illustrates the blunders committed by both Thailand and Cambodia as well as present and past committees in charge of border demarcation.

The first attempt at demarcation was made in 1867 and the most recent in 1907 during the reign of King Rama 5.

The border once had 73 demarcation posts, but only 40 or so of them can be found now.

Each time the border was demarcated, one side or the other would hand over land, but this was not the same as losing the country's territory.

Since 1907, no further demarcation work has been done.

After the Cambodian civil war, Khmer Rouge soldiers retreated to the Thai border and uprooted the demarcation posts. We didn't pay attention or fight to restore the posts, many of which were lost. Past governments were reluctant to raise the issue because it could put the country at a disadvantage and hurt their electoral support.

Thailand has insisted it is ready to talk and asked Cambodia to stop the fighting. Hun Sen, however, doesn't want to bend. How can the two sides come together?

Hun Sen is taking his usual approach and speaking in way that works in his interest. We want any talks to be bilateral but they want tripartite talks.

If we can't talk to each other, there should be a mediator. It's not just about security, but also national pride. The two countries don't want anyone encroaching on their territory.

Both countries want peace and we must find a middle ground.

In my view, if Cambodia wants a third country to step in, we should let them, because we have nothing to fear.

With a third party involved, we should include the border area near Preah Vihear temple in the talks.

What do you make of the clashes at the Ta Kwai and Ta Muen Thom temples?

Many Cambodian people of Vietnamese descent live on the border in Trat.

Cambodian troops use guerrilla warfare, ambushing our troops.

They fire handguns, then hit us with heavy artillery attacks.

That's more the Vietnamese style of fighting. I believe the soldiers who are really in command are those troops who are descended from the Vietnamese.

The ethnic Cambodian soldiers take a lesser role.

Is there a possibility of all-out war if talks are not an option?

The question before us is, are we fighting only with Cambodia?

We're not. We're also up against Vietnam, China, Japan, Australia and South Korea which have vested interests in Cambodia.

True, these countries are also our friends. But when their interests are at stake, it's not a black and white issue. They will want to protect their interests as well.

Do you see a way out of this problem? Those most affected are the villagers near the border.

Thailand and Cambodia must make some concessions by proposing that the Phanom Dong Rak mountain range dividing the border be turned into a world heritage site, plus the 4.6 square kilometre area as well as the Ta Kwai and Ta Muen Thom temples.

The areas must be co-managed equitably by the two countries if peace is to return. Otherwise, territorial disputes will carry on endlessly.

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Troops hammer out ceasefire [-Another ceasefire that won't hold? Thailand is embellishing the story?]

Col Neak Vong, deputy commander of Cambodia’s 402nd Brigade, centre, shakes hands with Thai soldiers after holding negotiations with Col Adul Boonthamcharoen, commander of the 26th Pararanger Military Regiment,on a ceasefire at Ta Muen Thom temple in Phanom Dong Rak district of Surin province yesterday. NOPPARATKINGKAEO

Cambodia wants time to collect soldiers' bodies

2/05/2011
Nopparat Kingkaeo, Pradit Ruangdit
Bangkok Post & AP

A senior Cambodian military officer has hammered out a ceasefire with Thai troops at Ta Muen Thom temple in Phanom Dong Rak district of Surin province.

Col Neak Vong, deputy commander of Cambodia's 402nd Brigade, contacted Col Adul Boonthamcharoen, commander of the 26th Pararanger Military Regiment around 4 pm to seek a ceasefire at the temple ruins of Ta Muen Thom.

After the meeting, both sides agreed to stop fighting and Cambodian troops agreed to move away from an area near the temple ruins.

A Thai army source said Col Neak Vong gave as his reasons for the ceasefire the fact that he wanted to collect several bodies of Cambodian troops killed in gunfire exchanges with Thai troops during the past 10 days, from a forest opposite the temple.

The bodies have begun rotting and giving off a bad odour.

He also told the Thai side that the morale of Cambodian troops has been shaken following the deaths of their fellow soldiers and a shortage of food and weapons, added the source.

After the agreement, Thai soldiers erected ranger flags in orange and green in front of the temple to protect their sovereignty in the area.

A wooden fence was set up at the entrance of the temple, reinforced with barbed wire.

A source said the ceasefire agreement at the operational level was a good sign that the border conflict would end soon.

Cambodian Defence Ministry spokesman Chhum Socheat said yesterday that one Cambodian soldier was killed in fighting with Thailand yesterday morning.

The two sides exchanged automatic weapons fire overnight and before dawn yesterday round the Ta Kwai and Ta Muen temples, about 14 kilometres from Ta Muen Thom.

The Cambodian soldier was killed by shrapnel from an artillery round, he said.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva yesterday said proposals to set up a committee to handle the Preah Vihear temple issue at the World Heritage Committee meetings this month and in June will be submitted to cabinet for consideration tomorrow.

In his weekly television talk show, Mr Abhisit assured the public that state agencies would protect the country's sovereignty even after the House is dissolved this week.

The border situation was showing progress as Thai and Cambodian military authorities were in close contact to prevent the dispute from escalating, he said. Exchanges of heavy arms fire between troops from the two countries had taken place earlier.

But after two rounds of negotiations, troops were now clashing with light weapons only, he said.

Second Army commander Thawatchai Samutsakhon has asked his subordinates to exercise restraint.

Seven Thai troops have been killed and scores of soldiers wounded in the border clashes with Cambodian soldiers, said Lt Gen Thawatchai.

A source said two evacuees taking refuge at a shelter in Prasat district of Surin died after suffering from stress.

Ms Reya Saengtawan, 42, a native of Phanom Dong Rak district, died at the temporary shelter at Nikhom Prasat centre, and Mrs Thong Khantiwong, 76, another evacuee, was taken to a local hospital and died.

The Second Army's front operation centre in Surin said seven Thai soldiers have been killed and 120 others wounded since the border clashes erupted.

The fighting had also killed one civilian, injured seven others, and damaged 11 houses.

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FTI: Don’t close border crossings

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Published: 28/04/2011

Online news:

The Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) does not agree with foreign minister’s proposal that Thailand should close all checkpoints on the Thai-Cambodian border, FTI chairman Payungsak Chartsutthipol said.

The proposal came after the clashes between Thai and Cambodian troops continued along the border in Surin province for the seventh day running. Border crossings in Surin have been closed.

“Closing all the border crossing points will only escalate the situation,” Mr Payungsak said on Thursday.

FTI chairman suggested that the government try to settle the border conflict in a positive way, by trying to peacefully restore the relationship with Cambodia. Most Thai people do not want the conflict to escalate, he added.

Mr Payungsak said the industrial sector was not worried too much about the fighting as it was occurring in a limited area and he believed Thailand and Cambodia would be able to avoid an escalation.

FTI deputy chairman Thanit Sorat, secretary-general of the Thai-Cambodian Business Council, said the impact of the fighting had so far been limited to border trade at Chong Chom and Chong Sangam border crossing points in Surin.

The border trade value there accounted for only seven per cent of the total, and that was not that much, he added.

He expected the trade along the Thai Cambodian border, including Aranyaprathet and Klong Luek checkpoints in Sa Kaeo and Klomng Yai checkpoint in Trat would substantially increase, to about 100 billion baht in 2011.

The border trade was valued at 79 billion baht last year, with Thailand benefitting the most with a 65 billion baht trade surplus.

Major products exported to Cambodia included finished oil, refined sugar, cement, fruits and food products. Thailand is the 15th largest investor in Cambodia, where the major investors are Taiwan, China, South Korea, Hong Kong, Vietnam and Malaysia, according to Mr Payungsak.

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US envoy encourages truce talks

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Published: 28/04/2011

Online news:

US ambassador to Thailand Kristie Kenney called on both Thailand and Cambodia to exercise patience and use peaceful means to end their border conflict, reports said.

US ambassador to Thailand Kristie Kenney (left) shakes hand with Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva at Government House on April 28, 2011.

Speaking to reporters after paying a courtesy call to Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva at Government House on Thursday morning, Mrs Kenney said the two countries must refrain from using force in settling the border dispute.

She also hoped that the mechanisms of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) could bring both countries back to the negotiating table.

Thailand and Cambodia were both long-time allies of the US and the US government wants to see the border conflict resolved as soon as possible, Mrs Kenney said.

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[Thai] Military's worst enemy is history

27/04/2011
Saritdet Marukatat
Bangkok Post

The Royal Thai Army has to overcome its historical jinx, which is its worst enemy at a time when tension is on the boil at the border with Cambodia.

Military leaders including army chief Gen Prayuth Chan-ocha have vowed that Thai troops are ready to launch "punitive action" against Cambodia once the government gives it the green light. At present Thailand's position is a defensive one - retaliating against Cambodian forces only when the latter intrude on Thai soil with military force.

As border tensions continue to escalate, the Thai army and government are drawing increasing flak from the public for not acting sternly and effectively enough to end this armed intrusion by Cambodia and for letting Phnom Penh's forces to brazenly challenge Thailand's legitimate boundaries.

When it comes to quarrels with Cambodia, the general perception is that Thailand cannot be the loser; it cannot let history repeat the failure of 1962, when the International Court of Justice ruled in favour of Phnom Penh regarding ownership of the hilltop Preah Vihear Temple (though the adjoining area of 4.6sqkm was not adjudicated on).

The fresh outbreak of armed clashes which began on April 22 at Ta Muen and Ta Kwai temple ruins in Surin's Phanom Dong Rak district and which yesterday expanded to the disputed area near Preah Vihear opposite Si Sa Ket's Kantharalak district, is viewed by the army as another attempt by Cambodia to seize Thai territory at the border - similar to the battle over the Hindu temple more than four decades ago. And the army is ready to teach this egregious neighbour a proper lesson - if the government gives it the go-ahead.

There is no doubt the Thai military's weapons are far superior to those of Cambodia's forces, even though Cambodian soldiers may have more experience in warfare dating back to the days when that country endured internal conflicts among its armed factions including the globally despised Khmer Rouge.

There is also the view that Cambodia's real intent behind the current border clashes is not to claim other disputed areas along the frontier, but that by turning the conflict into a full-scale war between the two countries would necessarily foment tension within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations; that by using the military option the Cambodian government would be fulfilling its diplomatic aim, which is to escalate the border issue to a stage where it would no longer be able to be resolved by the two parties to the conflict and thus necessitate the arbitration of a third party, preferably the United Nations.

The current clashes follow Asean's stalled proposal to send Indonesian observers to the Thai-Cambodian border, a plan that has yet to proceed due to the Thai army's strong opposition. Phnom Penh has long been prepared to receive the Indonesian observers, having arranged places for them to stay and monitor the situation. But Thailand views the move as a threat to its position, which is to try and find a solution to the dispute via direct talks with Cambodia.

Thailand's history of proud independence, having thwarted the colonial desires of France and Britain during the reign of King Chulalongkorn (Rama V), has shaped its belief that there is no need for foreign interference in the country's affairs, including the attempts to demarcate the land border with Cambodia. The slow pace of the Asean plan has caused much frustration for Phnom Penh and it now seemingly hopes to use the armed conflict as a means of bringing the Indonesian proposal back on track.

The timing of the latest clashes must also be considered: it is only a fortnight before the Asean summit is held in Jakarta. The issue will no doubt be the most urgent one on the agenda for Asean leaders when they meet during May 7-8, as other members are anxious that the border spat could delay if not derail Asean's ambitious project to turn the Southeast Asian region into one free-trade bloc, an Asean Economic Community, by 2015.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and Cambodian Premier Hun Sen will face peer pressure to sort out the conflict and the matter of installing Indonesian observers is expected to be revived as a solution to the problem. The presence of the observers would hopefully calm the situation and prevent future clashes. It would at the very least show that Asean can tackle members' problems on its own - although the Cambodian government wants the border issue to go all the way to the United Nations and perhaps even the International Court of Justice, to settle the disputed area for good with another ruling from the world court. That includes the 4.6sqkm area near Preah Vihear, since the World Heritage Committee wants to see how Cambodia will come up with a management plan as part of the conditions for listing the 9th century Hindu temple as a World Heritage Site.

Political problems have forced Thailand to reject a joint management plan undertaken by the two countries in the absence of a demarcated boundary near Preah Vihear. Thailand insists on settling the matter of unclear ownership first, before taking the next step of talking about managing the area.

The pressure is now on Mr Abhisit as he will have to go to Jakarta and convince the other Asean leaders on the best option for resolving the border dispute if Thailand continues to reject having observers from Indonesia.

The real obstacle remains Hun Sen, who apparently has lost all faith in settling the conflict through bilateral negotiations, though he too wants the Preah Vihear matter settled as soon as possible for fear of losing the World Heritage listing.

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Fighting near Preah Vihear and in Surin

http://www.bangkokpost.com/

via CAAI

Published: 26/04/2011 at 04:13 PM

Online news: Asia

Thai and Cambodian soldiers clashed on Tuesday afternoon in the disputed area around Preah Vihear temple on the border in Kantharalak district of Si Sa Ket province, and again on the border in Surin province.

The fighting began about 1.30pm, with sounds of fierce exchanges involving both small arms and heavy weapons, local reports said.

Continuous gunfire could be heard from the area near Wat Kaew Sika Khiri Savara, around the Preah Vihear temple and Phu Makhua.

The violence reportedly erupted after Cambodian soldiers at Wat Kaew Sika Khiri Savara opened fire at a Thai F16 fighter which was flying along the Thai-Cambodian border.

Second Army spokesman Prawit Hookaew said 10 Thai soldiers were wounded in an earlier clash today on the border in Surin province.

F-16 fighters (Photo by Somchai Poomlard)

Col Prawit said the fighting occurred between 3.20am and 5am, when Cambodian soldiers tried to capture Ta Kwai and Ta Muen Thom temple ruins but were repulsed.

Renewed fighting was reported in the afternoon as the two sides exchanged heavy fire near Ta Muen Thom temple from about 3 pm. Clashes were also reported near Ta Kwai temple and Chong Krang border pass in northeastern Surin province.

There were no reports of death or injuries from either side. In late afternoon the sound of artillery fire was still being heard.

Col Prawit said there are now civilians including women and children staying among Cambodian soldiers at all operational bases around Preah Vihear temple so Thai soldiers have to be more careful to make sure they do not shoot civilians.

"I can assure you that we can protect our sovereignty with our border defence forces.

"Negotiation is out of the question because every movement on the Cambodian side is commanded solely by (Cambodian Prime Minister) Hun Sen.

"Last night seven or eight artillery rounds were fired as us across the border and one of them landed seven or eight kilometres inside Thai territory, near Phanom Dong Rak hospital," Col Prawit said.

The spokesman said the 2nd Army has sufficient military strength to cope with the situation without having to call for reinforcements.

Dr Kamron Chaisiri, a Zone 14 public health inspector, said 10 Thai soldiers suffered minor injuries in the Surin clash early this morning.

They were admitted to Veerawat Yothin military hospital in Surin.

The incident brought the number of wounded up to 42 on the Thai side since the fighting began on Friday, while the death toll remained at five, he said.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has instructed all ministries to review all areas of their cooperation with Cambodia.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva (left) and acting government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn (Photo by Pattanapong Hirunard)

Acting government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn said the cabinet passed a three-part resolution today:

- Retaliatory militarily action to push Cambodian soldiers out of the disputed area.

- Diplomatic efforts to bring Cambodia back to bilateral talks.

- All ministries are to review work plans and mechanisms involving cooperation with Cambodia.

Mr Panitan said the government has important evidence to be presented in talks to bring about an end to the conflict.

The evidence will also be used to explain the situation to the international community.

He believed the situation would improve after the leaders of Thailand and Cambodia meet at an Asean meeting in Indonesia next week. Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya also has an appointment with Asean chairman Marty Natalegawa on April 28.

"Thailand will inform the Asean chair that Thailand agrees to international observers but Cambodian troops must withdraw from Preah Vihear," Mr Panitan said.

The government will continue to provide security for the people and take steps to prevent the conflict from escalating further, although Cambodia has shown the intention to do otherwise, he said.

Mr Panitan stressed that the government and the military do not have a conflict of policy.

Even when it becomes a caretaker government following a House dissolution, it will be able to keep the situation under control, he added.

This point was also made by Deputy Prime Minister overseeing security Suthep Thaugsuban.

He said a continuation of the border conflict would not disrupt the approaching general election.

"Even if the border conflict continues once the government is only in an acting role [after a dissolution], there won't be any constraints or disadvantages because the acting government can perform its duty and still has the full authority to command," Mr Suthep said.

When reporters asked the deputy premier how the border problem would be solved if Cambodia refused to negotiate, he said there will be negotiations when Cambodia is ready.

Thailand will not invade its neighbour's territory, but at the same time the army must protect the country's sovereignty, he said.

The government will not close all Thai-Cambodian border checkpoints as people living along the border in both countries would be affected, he said.

"I don't know why Cambodia wants to capture the Ta Kwai temple ruins. It could be that Prime Minister Hun Sen wants to promote his son [Hun Manet] or create a new hero. I don't want to talk further about this," he said.

Mr Suthep also said he did not believe rumours that Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has cancer.

Army spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd said the Cambodian army has suffered more losses than the Thai military in the clashes.

"The Thai army is not on the defensive. When they fired five, we fired 20 back," he said.

Cambodia had suffered 10 times the losses of the Thai forces, he said, but the Thai army did not want to invade because it would then become a full-scale war.

He did not give actual details of the Cambodian losses.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Monday urged Thailand and Cambodia to show restraint and said Washington was "deeply concerned".

She said that the United States had engaged directly with Thai and Cambodian officials in hopes of ending the violence, without providing further details.

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More Thai army's lies and propaganda

[Thai] Army: Cambodia using human shields

25/04/2011
Wassana Nanuam
Bangkok Post

Cambodian soldiers have brought women and children to the border, using them as a human shield against Thai forces, according to a report by the 2nd Army's Suranaree Task Force.

The task forcereport said that about a week before the latest series of border clashes began in Surin on Friday, Cambodian soldiers started to move civilian families - mostly women and children - into seven spots:

1. 5 families to Sam Tae area;

2. 15 families to Ta Thao pass and Hill 400, where a military base is located;

3. 7 families to a community at the foot of the staircase to the Preah Vihear temple;

4. 8 families to a military base at Phu Makhua;

5. One family to the Phra Phalai pass;

6. 985 families to the Sa-ngam pass; and

7. 20 families to the Tamaria stream.

A source at the Suranaree Task Force said Cambodia is using the human shields to prevent Thai attacks. If casualties are inflicted on these civilians, Cambodia could protest or condemn Thailand internationally, to raise the Thai-Cambodian conflict to the world forum.

The source claimed as many as 22 Cambodian soldiers were killed and 80 wounded in heavy fighting on Sunday. One of the dead was a colonel and son of a former Khmer Rouge leader.

About 30 Cambodian soldiers were killed in the clashes on Friday and 10 on Saturday, according to the source.

Thai soldiers suffered five killed - three on Friday, one on Saturday and one on Sunday, the source said.

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Border closure costing [Thai] traders dearly

25/04/2011
Bangkok Post

Trade worth 15 to 20 million baht a day is being lost due to the closure of the Chong Chom border checkpoint in Kab Choeng district of Surin because of the renewed fighting on the border with Cambodia, a local business leader said on Monday.

A large quantity of good, particularly fuel, was held up on the Thai side of the border unable to cross to its usual destination in O-Samet in Cambodia’s Oddar Meanchey province, said Nanthawat Kijsakulpaisarn, secretary-general of Surin Chamber of Commerce.

Cross-border trade at this checkpoint was worth some 800 million baht annually. The closure was costing between 15 and 20 million baht a day in lost revenues, he said.

He called on the Thai and Cambodian governments to urgently hold talks to end the conflict.

The border crossing has been closed since Friday.

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More bloodshed feared [-Thailand plans more clashes in Oddar Meanchey?]

[Thai] Tanks advance along a road in Ban Kok Krachai in Buri Ram’s Ban Kruat district. They were sent to back up troops at the border as skirmishes erupted for a third day. TAWATCHAI KEMGUMNERD

World alarmed at rise in violence, says Surin

25/04/2011
Bangkok Post

Fears of full-scale bloody battles along the Thai-Cambodian border grew yesterday as both sides began to deploy heavy artillery.

Tensions continued to escalate in Surin's Phanom Dong Rak district after a new round of border clashes between Thai and Cambodian troops yesterday, the third in three days.

Both sides were bringing in reinforcements right along the border including heavy weaponry, heightening fears that war could be looming.

Yesterday's clashes started at about 10am and stopped at about 6pm near Ta Muen Thom and Ta Kwai temples in Surin. Three more Thai soldiers were injured.

Four Thai soldiers have been killed and 27 injured as of yesterday since fighting first broke out on Friday.

More details: Cambodian plot to seize temples

Cambodian government spokesman Phay Siphan said six Cambodian soldiers were killed in fighting and 13 injured during the previous two days.

Thai authorities said no civilians were killed or injured during the fighting, the first clashes between the two countries since February. They said thousands of villagers in the area have been evacuated to safety. The situation caused Thai soldiers to close Chong Jom border pass in Kab Choeng district of Surin and Chong Sa-ngam border pass in Phu Sing district of Si Sa Ket yesterday.

The latest border clashes prompted Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva to call a video conference with local authorities in Surin where the clash took place and those of adjacent Buri Ram province yesterday afternoon to update the situation.

The premier insisted border clashes broke out because Cambodian troops had invaded deeply into Thai territory and started firing at the Thai troops first. He said Thai soldiers had to fight back to defend the country' s sovereignty and to protect their lives.

Thai soldiers responded only when it was necessary and aimed only at military targets to prevent any harm to Cambodian civilians, he said.

Lt Gen Tawatchai Samutsakhon, 2nd Army commander, told the conference that reports on Cambodian radio revealed that Cambodia suffered heavier injuries and weaponry damages.

Army chief Gen Prayuth Chan-ocha also said he put soldiers on standby around the clock and infantry soldiers and paramilitary rangers were mainly responsible for present border operations. To end the border conflict, Prime Minister Abhisit said he would seek a chance to talk with his Cambodian counterpart Hun Sen at the upcoming 18th Asean Summit scheduled to be held in Jakarta between May 7 and 8.

"I will ask him to help take care of the Thai-Cambodian border and solve the problem through existing bilateral mechanisms," Mr Abhisit said.

Asean and the United Nations expressed their immediate concerns shortly after the latest border fighting.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged Thailand and Cambodia to take immediate measures for a ceasefire.

Mr Ban said he believes the dispute cannot be resolved by military means and urged the two countries to engage in serious dialogue.

Asean secretary-general Surin Pitsuwan also wanted the two countries to turn to the negotiating table.

"The world and Asean is alarmed by the new outbreak of violent and fatal clashes along the Cambodian-Thai border," Mr Surin said.

"The appeal for restraint and a quick return to the negotiating table will become louder from other Asean members and dialogue partners.

"I can only add to that my voice to call for a peaceful solution to a long simmering tension between our two Asean member states."

Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said his Indonesian counterpart Marty Natalegawa, as the incumbent Asean chairman, would today leave Jakarta for Bangkok to discuss the current Thai-Cambodian border situation with him.

Mr Kasit will visit Surin to observe the situation today. He will then meet with Mr Marty at Novotel Suvarnabhumi Airport Hotel at 7pm. Before meeting with Mr Kasit, Mr Marty will travel to Phnom Penh to meet with his Cambodian counterpart Hor Namhong.

Mr Kasit said he would have talks with Hor Namhong to discuss the border problem over the next four to five days.

Thailand had also clarified the latest border situation to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) that the situation was not related to Unesco's World Heritage Committee (WHC) meeting in Paris in June.

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Cambodian officers gave their word, not Hun Sen [-Tawatchai Samutsakhon is spewing out lie foams from his mouth yet again!!!]

Tawatchai Samutsakhon is good at FIBBING after eating ice creams at 7-Eleven

25/04/2011
Wassana Nanuam
Bangkok Post

Cambodia used unmanned aerial vehicles to photograph Thai military locations and Thailand also used similar aircraft to do the same on Cambodian soil. Claim made by Thai foul mouth general Tawatchai Samutsakhon

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and his son, an army commander, have broken a gentleman's agreement for a truce, leading to the latest border clash and damage to both Thailand and Cambodia.

Cambodian soldiers opened fire at Thai troops who were warning them not to build a base and bunkers in a disputed area 400m west of the Ta Kwai temple on Friday morning as they were violating the Thai-Cambodian 2000 memorandum of understanding that prohibits any modification or building, especially of military facilities, in disputed areas pending demarcation.

Thai soldiers expected their Cambodian counterparts to honour the gentleman's agreement for a truce, so they trusted their counterparts and sustained many deaths and injuries from the unexpected opening of fire.

The Thai-Cambodian border seemed peaceful over the past two months, after the truce had been agreed by Thai soldiers led by army chief-of-staff Dapong Rattanasuwan and Cambodian soldiers led by Cambodian army deputy commander Hun Manet in Cambodian territory next to Chong Sa-ngam border pass in Phu Sing district of Thailand's Si Sa Ket province.

Thai and Cambodian soldiers coexisted in a friendly manner in the 4.6 square kilometre disputed area near the Preah Vihear temple.

They met, shared meals, played sports and enjoyed the Songkran water festival together. That together with the supposed credibility of the son of Hun Sen convinced Thai soldiers that Cambodia was honouring the truce.

However, a local source said there were signs leading to the latest clash. During the Songkran festival Lt Gen Hun Manet, in his capacity as the combat commander in the vicinity of the Preah Vihear temple, came to Preah Vihear province and Gen Kun Kim, deputy commander-in-chief of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces, travelled to areas near Ta Kwai and Ta Muen temples to inspect and promote local soldiers.

Cambodian soldiers conducted military exercises from late March to last week. They also made reinforcements but claimed the movements were only parts of such drills.

Cambodia used unmanned aerial vehicles to photograph Thai military locations and Thailand also used similar aircraft to do the same on Cambodian soil.

"It is surely the order of Hun Sen because he is upset with the Thai armed forces' refusal to welcome military observers from Indonesia and determination on bilateral approaches. [He] wants to escalate the issue internationally so he had to trigger fire to attract the UN and other countries to handle the issue," said Gen Tawatchai Samutsakhon, commander of Thailand's 2nd Army, who supervises defence affairs in the Northeast.

"I did not think Cambodian soldiers would break the promise. Although the truce was not signed, it was a gentleman's agreement."

He said Cambodian soldiers always opened fire first. He contacted a local Cambodian commander who said it was an order. Lt Gen Tawatchai said the order was known to have come from Hun Sen.

"The order of Hun Sen led to the deaths and injury of Cambodian soldiers and heavy damage of their weaponry as Thai soldiers responded equally. We are more precise and even ready to use Caesar [self-propelled] artillery," Lt Gen Tawatchai said.

He has also put his soldiers near the Preah Vihear temple in Kantharalak district of Si Sa Ket on standby as Cambodian soldiers removed the covers of their artillery and multi-barrel rocket launchers there.

"Regarding the situation at Preah Vihear, it depends on Hun Sen as to whether he wants it to expand to the area. It is up to him because we are only defensive and are fully ready," Lt Gen Tawatchai said.

"Don't worry. If [you] shoot at us, [we] will fire back with similar weapons. The Army chief has given a green light. Thai soldiers do not want a fight or a war but Cambodian soldiers started it. So, we must fight and react to protect Thai soldiers, sovereignty and Thai people.

"From now on, we will not believe in any promise or gentleman's agreement from Cambodian soldiers. Even on the first day of the clash, they told us by phone to stop firing our artillery but when we stopped, Cambodia resumed firing their artillery shells at us."

He also denied reports that Thai soldiers were captured by Cambodian troops.

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[Thai] Army accuses Cambodia of plot to seize temples [-Another LAME Thai excuse?]

Suffer the little children: A woman feeds her children with corn seeds as they hide in a water drainage pipe in Ban Nong Waeng of Buri Ram’s Ban Kruat district. Food is scarce in the village which has been affected by the fighting. TAWATCHAI KEMGUMNERD

Heavily armed troops, tanks 'leave Preah Vihear base'

25/04/2011
Wassana Nanuam
Bangkok Post

The Thai army has accused Cambodia of trying to seize Ta Kwai and Ta Muen Thom temples in a plot similar to its present occupation of the 4.6 square-kilometre overlapping border near Preah Vihear temple.

Phnom Penh has reportedly removed soldiers and tanks from its Preah Vihear military base, next to the disputed main border area near Si Sa Ket province, to fortify its troops near the two temples at the Thai-Cambodian border in Surin's Phanom Dong Rak district, said army spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd citing a late military report.

This showed Phnom Penh is focusing more on the overlapping border near Surin by first trying to seize Ta Kwai temple. Fortunately, Col Sansern said, Thai troops managed to control the situation, preventing its occupation.

A cause of the Ta Kwai clash, that erupted last Friday, is apparently Phnom Penh's failure to follow an agreement made with Thailand to make the area one where armed soldiers and land adaptation are prohibited, he said.

Thai military officers claimed Cambodian troops were building a bunker in the area and needed to warn them against the act. But when the officers approached them, the Cambodian soldiers opened fire at the officers, Col Sansern said.

"If we had not warned them before the confrontation, Cambodia would have seized the area as they did in the areas near Preah Vihear temple," he said.

"So letting problems occur today is better than seeing it turn chronic in the future."

The Cambodian approach to solve the border conflict at Preah Vihear is to take villagers, especially women and children, to settle in its military area so that "when something happens, it will use them to back its claims", Col Sansern said.

During the three days of clashes, Thai soldiers have been told to stick to necessary responses to the Cambodian attacks by gradually adopting soft to harsher strikes.

The army used rifles, machine guns and then cannons and kept trying to contact Cambodian military commanders for a ceasefire, Col Sansern said.

Defence spokesman Col Thanathip Sawangsaeng denied the allegation that Thai troops resorted to air strikes and chemical weapons.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva also told the army to adopt a defensive approach when second army chief Lt Gen Thawatchai Samutsakhon sought permission to send five more battalions to the clash scene out of concerns over Cambodia's alleged attempt to occupy Ta Kwai and Ta Muen Thom temples, an army source said.

Col Sansern yesterday insisted Thailand wanted a permanent ceasefire and a solution to the border dispute through bilateral peace talks.

"We always honour Cambodia, but we also need to protect our land," he said.

"We hope Cambodia sees our sincerity and that we get together to solve the problem through bilateral talks. No one knows the problem better than the two countries."

Asked whether a third country can step in to help broker the talks, he said it depends on an agreement to be made between Bangkok and Phnom Penh on what should be an appropriate role of the third party.

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