Hun Manet seeks de-escalation of border dispute, bats for talks

(Clockwise from top left) Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and Caretaker Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul sign a peace deal; A woman shows a house affected by Thai shelling inside Cambodian territory; Thai forces put up barbed wire fences; shipping containers put up by the Thai military to block a road. AKP

#National

Synopsis: Prime Minister Hun Manet calls for technical talks to resolve the current border dispute with Thailand while pledging the Kingdom’s commitment to sovereignty and balanced foreign relations.

Prime Minister Hun Manet has called for renewed technical negotiations with Thailand to resolve the border tensions, while avowing Cambodia’s commitment to sovereignty and balanced foreign relations.

Speaking in an interview with Reuters on Tuesday during his visit to the United States to attend the inaugural meeting of the Board of Peace, Mr Hun Manet said the new body could play a constructive role in supporting global peace efforts, including de-escalation between Cambodia and Thailand.

“I believe that the Board of Peace will be an additional, valuable addition to the existing international organisations’ mechanisms to promote peace and stability and also to build and secure peace in many regions that are affected or threatened by war and conflicts,” he said.

He acknowledged that Cambodia’s border situation with Thailand remains fragile after months of tension.

“Cambodia right now has been in border issues with Thailand over the past six months, and we hope that the Board of Peace will also play a role in helping for de-escalation and restoring peace and stability between Cambodia and Thailand as well,” he said. “Unfortunately, so far it’s still fragile.”

Mr Hun Manet stated that Thai forces are currently positioned inside areas Cambodia considers its territory.

“We still have Thai forces occupied deep into Cambodian territory in many areas. This is further beyond even Thailand’s own unilateral claim line borderline,” he said.

He also cited ground-level developments that he said have affected civilians living near the border.

“Certain activities that have been conducted by Thai troops, such as the laying of containers and barbed wire to block the road, have caused hardship to our people,” he said, adding that approximately 80,000 people have been displaced and are unable to return home because of blocked access.

“So this is not an accusation, but it’s a statement of the facts on the ground,” he added.

The Cambodian Premier stressed that Cambodia remains committed to resolving the dispute through established technical mechanisms rather than force.

“It’s already stated clearly that both sides will use the JBC as a mechanism to settle demarcation work. No other mechanism or the use of force can alter or determine the boundary of the country,” he said, referring to the Joint Boundary Commission (JBC).

He reiterated Cambodia’s position that demarcation must proceed according to existing treaties and agreements.

“Our position is we want to have this JBC, even the technical work, resume as fast as possible to determine whose land it belongs to,” he said. “Cambodia does not want or wish to infringe on our neighbour’s sovereignty or territorial integrity. We also do not accept the violation of our sovereignty or territorial integrity.”

According to the Prime Minister, verification of territorial claims must rely on legal frameworks and technical measurement rather than military presence.

“The only way to verify that is using the technical mechanism that we have based on treaties, based on all the agreements we have,” he said.

Mr Hun Manet expressed hope that Thailand would move forward with technical discussions following its recent election.

“So we hope that Thailand will agree and start to allow the JVC to work as early as possible as stated in the joint statement on the 27th of December,” he said. “Now the election is done, we hope that Thailand can start, at least on the technical level, to start measuring or start demarcating in the hot zone so that we can go back to life.”

The prime minister also addressed long-standing speculation about Cambodia’s defence ties and the possibility of hosting foreign military bases.

He firmly denied any such intention, citing constitutional provisions.

“We had clearly stated, first, our constitution does not allow us to have any countries to have military bases. We did not change the constitution because we did not intend to have any base on that,” he said.

He explained that limited access to certain facilities during a recent construction period had led to misunderstandings.

-Khmer Times-
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