Cambodia’s reactions to the deployments of Thai warships in the “overlapping claim areas” off the Cambodian coast

Source: Radio Free Asia
Reported in English by Khmerization
Cambodian naval ships bought from China.
Mr. Phay Siphan, spokesman for the Council of Ministers, said Cambodia considers a set up of a Thai naval base in Trat province as a violation of the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the two countries in 2000 as well as a security threat to Cambodia.

Mr. Phay Siphan’s reactions came after reports that the Thai Navy ordered the deployments of several naval ships to patrol in the so-called “overlapping claim areas” in protest against Cambodian oil explorations in the areas.

He said: “This is a show of militatry threats which affect the security of the kingdom of Cambodia. The second issue is that the use of a military force in order to negotiate the border issues or to protect the waters in the Khmer-Thai Gulf is not in line with the Memorandum of Understanding that we have signed in 2000.”

The Thai embassy in Phnom Penh cannot be reached for comments, but a Thai naval officer quoted by Bangkok Post said Thailand had deployed several naval ships in the areas to prevent the French company Total from conducting any oil explorations in the areas.

According to Bangkok Post, Thailand considers Cambodia’s granting of exploration rights to Total as a political strategy to get France to help it resolve its maritime borders with Thailand. A Thai official noted that France had helped Cambodia win the Preah Vihear case in the International Court in 1962.

Mr. Phay Siphan said Cambodia will send a diplomatic note to Thailand in protest of the deployments of those Thai warships in the so-called “overlapping claim areas” which Cambodia considers as locating in Cambodia’s territorial waters.

It is not sure if those Thai warships are able to prevent the exploration works of the French-Cambodian team.

Thai commander sent a letter of apology for airspace violations

Source: Deum Ampil newspaper
Reported in English by Khmerization
Thai commander of the Chantaburi-Trat Airbase has written a letter of apology to Cambodian commander for repeated airspace violations over Pailin and Samlaut areas in early an mid August.

The Cambodian military claimed that on 3rd and 12th August, Thai jet fighters had flown at low altitude and at high speed over Pailin and Ratanak Mondul, more than 3o km deep inside Cambodian territories, which caused panic among shoppers at Pailin Market.

Mr. Koy Kuong, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told Deum Ampil on the afternoon of 17th that the Thai commander had sent a letter of apology. He said: “The Thai Command based at Chantaburi province had sent a letter on 14th August 2009 to the Cambodian military commander to apologise for the violations of Cambodian airspace three times recently by Thai planes.”

Mr. Koy Kuong added: “In the letter the Thai side said that the violations happened accidentally as a result of bad weather and the planes’ compasses did not work, that’s why the planes accidentally entered Cambodian airspace. In the letter, the Thai said that they respect Cambodian sovereignty and will do their utmost not to repeat the violations again.”

Mr. Koy Kuong said Cambodian has already warned Thailand not to repeat these sorts of violations again.

Ministry of Information instruct all publications to use “Preah Vihear is Cambodian-owned”

Source: Deum Ampil newspaper
Reported in English by Khmerization

Cambodian Ministry of Information had informed all publications, include newspapers and magazines both in Khmer and foreign language publications, to use the phrase “Preah Vihear is Cambodian-owned” or “the Cambodian-owned Preah Vihear temple” in their description of this long disputed temple with Thailand.

The instruction came in the form of a letter from Information Minister Khieu Kanharith dated 6th August. The letter added that Preah Vihear temple (pictured) was built by the Khmer ancestors, therefore all Khmers must be proud of their achievements by helping the preserve their works.

This new directive comes at a time when many foreign media described the temple as a “Hindu temple”, instead of the “Khmer temple”, making unsuspecting readers who are unfamiliar with the history of the temple confused as to who built and owned the temple.

Preah Vihear temple was built in the 9th century when the Cambodian population as well as the Khmer kings followed Hinduism.

Bilateral talks with Thailand hailed by FMs

The Phnom Penh Post
Vong Sokheng and Sam Rith
Officials say border row won’t hinder warming of relations.

FOREIGN ministers from Cambodia and Thailand resumed joint policy talks for the first time in three years Wednesday after months of fractious relations over a border temple dispute.

Foreign Minister Hor Namhong and his Thai counterpart Kasit Piromya met at a Bangkok hotel to discuss the spat and deeper economic ties.

Clashes near the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple have left several soldiers dead since July 2008, when the temple was granted UN World Heritage status, and tensions have also arisen over disputed waters where both countries have granted oil and gas exploration rights to private companies.

High-level delegations have met at various times over the past year in an attempt to heal the rifts, but Wednesday’s meeting is the first time since 2006 that ministers have convened their joint policy commission.

The body had previously met once a year to oversee relations between the two countries.

Hor Namhong hailed the meeting for promoting “progress” between the two countries after his return from talks, adding, however, that he urged Thailand’s parliament to approve recommendations from previous border talks that are hoped to speed a resolution to the dispute over territory contested by the neighbours.

“The agreement should be approved as soon as possible … so that the Joint Border Commission can begin demarcating the border,” he said.

The foreign ministers said earlier that they would resume the joint technical committee on the maritime dispute and vowed the disagreement would not be an obstacle.

“Our problems will not trouble our relations. Whatever our troubles are, we will solve them,” Kasit said following the two-hour meeting.

Whatever our troubles are, we will solve them.

The pair also reached agreements on efforts to fight human trafficking and an arrangement that will allow some prisoners, after serving minimum periods of imprisonment, to be transferred in order to serve their remaining sentences in their own countries.

The discussions took in economic ties, as well, with Hor Namhong saying the pair had discussed opening a new border crossing in Banteay Meanchey province.

“[Prime Minister] Abisit Vejjajiva agreed to study this and push to open [the new border crossing] soon,” he said, adding that Cambodia had also urged Thailand to ease restriction on the purchase of produce from Cambodian farmers along the border.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY AFP

Thai soldiers busy building concrete border fences

Source: Kampuchea Thmey newspaper
Reported in English by Khmerization
Thai bunkers that were built on the frontline.
Reports from the Preah Vihear frontlines say that Thai soldiers deployed along the borders are busy constructing concrete border walls in prohibited areas, in violations of previous agreements between the wo sides.

Mr. Chea Chon, battallion commander of the Phnom Trop frontline, told Kampuchea Thmey that he was alarmed to see many reinforced concrete walls had been built by the Thai side. Everyday, many heavy machinery were busy building those walls, he said.

Mr. Chea Chon said, originally he thought the machinery were building concrete bunkers and trenches, but now he saw 100-metres long thick walls of one metres in height had been installed.

Mr. Chea Chon said that some Thai soldiers who can speak Khmer told him that the Thai side intended to build the concrete walls all the way from Chak Chreng to Preah Vihear temple, a distance of 7 kilometres. He said the Thai soldiers are under order to complete the 7-kilometre long concrete walls by the end of 2009.

Gen. Chea Dara, Deputy Commander-in-Chief in charge of the Preah Vihear border operations, said the Cambodian side is monitoring the Thai actions to see if they constitute a territorial violation of Cambodian sovereignty.

Mr. Khieu Kanharith, Cambodian government spokesman, said Cambodian border soldiers should inspect if the Thai actions violate Cambodian sovereignty. If they built the walls on Thai territories, Cambodia will not bother, he said.

He added that Cambodian soldiers are ordered to investigate the Thai activities, if found that the walls are built on Khmer soil, their activites must stop and the walls already been built must be destroyed immediately.

Charge raised against Thai prime minister

BANGKOK, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) — Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva (pictured) on Thursday was accused, by a national body, of breach of duty, seven days after a letter was submitted calling for Abhisit to act against a foreign oil drilling program in a disputed marine area, Thai media reported.

According to Bangkok Post online, the National People’s Assembly of Thailand has filed the complaint to National Anti-Corruption Commission on Thursday, leaving the latter to decide whether the prime minister neglected his duty as he failed to identify Thailand’s marine boundary to the Cambodian government, which is drawing up an agreement with a French company on oil drilling in its offshore block 3 in the Gulf of Thailand, an disputed area.

The accusation followed a letter by the group on July 30, which was forwarded to the prime minister through the Government House complaints center by Chaiwat Sinsuwong, the assembly Secretary-General, and Admiral Bannawit Kengrian, chairman of the assembly’s committee for monitoring the use of state power.

In the letter they urged the government to act against the agreement being made between the Cambodian government and the French oil company Total.

Bannawit had said after the letter that the assembly also submitted a protest letter to the French embassy in Bangkok. He said the French ambassador admitted the area was under dispute.

He had warned at that time that Abhisit would be charged with neglect of duty if he failed to act on this matter in seven days.

Phnom Penh is reported to be drawing up an agreement to give Total rights to look for oil in its offshore block 3 in the Gulf of Thailand. And a provisional agreement was reached in mid-July when Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen was in Paris, according to Bangkok Post online.

Editor: Xiong Tong

Officials reject Thai border market claim

The Phnom Penh Post
Tuesday, 04 August 2009 15:03
Cheang Sokha
Government disputes Thai argument that planned market reconstruction violates bilateral agreements.
CAMBODIAN officials have rejected Thai government claims that the reconstruction of a market at the foot of Preah Vihear temple violates a border agreement signed by the two countries, saying the project has nothing to do with the continuing standoff over contested territory.

Phay Siphan, spokesman for the Council of Ministers, said that the reconstruction of the market – which Cambodia says was destroyed by Thai rocket fire during border clashes in April – was merely intended to provide housing to 319 vendor families made homeless by the incident.

“Thailand’s claims are groundless,” he said Monday.

“They are only trying to disturb Cambodia.”

On Thursday, Thailand’s border communication office wrote to its Cambodian counterpart, claiming that the construction of new stalls at the market violated a memorandum of understanding on border demarcation signed between the two countries in 2000.

“The border communication team of Region 1 would like to inform you that the above action is in violation of the joint MoU on inspection and border demarcation,” the letter stated.

Cambodia and Thailand have never fully demarcated their 805-kilometre shared border.

Under construction

Sar Thavy, Preah Vihear deputy governor and a member of the market construction commission, said Monday that several stalls had already been rebuilt, and that the all construction activities were taking place on Cambodian soil.

“We have to rebuild those stalls because [the market] has been on that site for many years,” he said.

“If Thailand complains about our reconstruction, it is their problem.”

He added that construction workers were hurriedly building stands in an attempt to finish the project as soon as possible.

In May, Cambodia officially requested US$2.1 million in compensation for the damage at the market, but so far there has been no response from Bangkok.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Koy Kuong said that Thailand had not yet sent a formal diplomatic note protesting the reconstruction, but added that Foreign Minister Hor Namhong was set to leave for Bangkok today for a meeting of the Joint Border Commission, set up to negotiate border issues.

Var Kimhong, Cambodia’s top border negotiator, could not be reached for comment Monday.

Officials reject Thai group’s claims over French oil deal

Monday, 03 August 2009 15:02
Sebatian Strangio
But protests highlight the challenges of drilling for oil in disputed areas.

CAMBODIAN officials have dismissed Thai protesters’ claims that a recent oil exploration agreement between Cambodia and French oil giant Total is a violation of Thai sovereignty, saying Cambodia has the right to award exploration rights inside the Gulf of Thailand’s 27,000-square-kilometre overlapping claims area (OCA).

During Prime Minister Hun Sen’s visit to France last month, officials announced an agreement offering Total the exploration rights to a 2,430-square-kilometre block – known as Area III – that sits inside the OCA.

According to Thai media reports, the People’s Assembly of Thailand (PAT), a nationalist advocacy group, wrote to Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva on Thursday to criticise the government and the armed forces for not taking action to head off the deal, which they said infringes on Thai territory.

A copy of the letter was also reportedly sent to the French Embassy in Bangkok.

Var Kimhong, Cambodia’s top border negotiator, said he had not seen the Thai letter, but that Cambodia had the right to award exploration rights as it saw fit.

“The Thai authorities have nothing to do with the block we have given to Total,” he said. “It is under Cambodian sovereignty.”

However, the letter raises questions about future exploration of the OCA, including Area III. Bangkok has also allocated the zone, which it refers to as B10 and B11, to US oil company Chevron and Japan’s Mitsui.

Jean-Pierre Labbe, general manager of Total EP Cambodge, told the Post in July that Total would sign a 10-year conditional petroleum agreement for Area III, the terms of which would prevent the company from undertaking any explorations until a resolution was reached with Thailand over the ownership of the zone.

On Thursday, Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Vimol Kidchop said similarly that any company operating inside the OCA would “not be allowed to explore or develop petroleum resources … unless Thailand and Cambodia successfully resolve the dispute”.

Joint development?
Past cases may offer a way forward with the OCA. In 2000, the governments of Nigeria and Sao Tome and Principe signed an agreement for the joint development of a disputed 35,000-square-kilometre maritime zone after failing to reach an agreement on border delimitation.

According to a paper presented at an International Oil and Gas Conference, held in Cambodia in March 2008, the two countries “agreed to work together to develop the area and to benefit from any oil or gas discoveries that are made”.

Labbe said he expected some form of joint development agreement would be required between Cambodia and Thailand, rather than a strict geographical division of the OCA. But he said it was unclear whether the countries would be able to reach such an agreement.

Thitinan Ponsudhirak, a political analyst at Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn University, described the issue as a “follow-on” to the standoff over Preah Vihear temple and said that the dispute was unlikely to be resolved soon.

“[The OCA issue] is held hostage to Thai-Cambodian relations, and Thai-Cambodian relations are rocky at the moment,” he said by phone.

Labbe said negotiations between the two countries had been set back by the coup that removed former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra in 2006, but he remained optimistic that the OCA issue would soon be resolved.

“Every time there is a meeting… they discuss the issue positively,” he said last month.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY STEVE FINCH

Thailand opposed oil concessionaires awarded to Total off the coast of Sihanoukville

The yellow areas are the areas awarded to Total which are described as “Thailand-Cambodia Claim Area Blocks”.

Source: Koh Santepheap newspaper
Reported in English by Khmerization

Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong has led a delegation to the 6th border talks with Thailand in Bangkok from 4-6 August. According to official sources, the talks will be centred on the delimitation and demarcation of the general borders between the two countries.

But unofficial sources said that the agenda of the meeting will be focused more on the oil concessionaires recently awarded to the French company, Total, which was said to be opposed by the Thai government.

The Koh Santepheap newspaper reported that a Thai website has reported that a group of Thai “yellow shirt” activists had lodged a letter of complaint against the oil concessionaires awarded to Total by saying that the areas awarded to Total are located in the Thai territorial waters. The letter stated that the concessionaires awarded to Total by the Cambodian government is illegal which will eventually cause diplomatic frictions between Thailand and France, including the impact on trades and businesses between the two countries.

Ms. Vimol Kitchob, spokeswoman for the Thai Foreign Ministry, was quoted by the website as saying that the areas awarded to Total by the Cambodian government used to called “overlapping areas”, but the two governments later agreed to stop using the words “overlapping areas” because she said there is no part of the areas that was “overlapped”. The website quoted the Thai spokeswoman as saying that the areas are “undelimited areas”- meaning that the areas have not been decided to which countries they belong.

6th Thai-Cambodian Joint Commission meets in Bangkok

BANGKOK, Aug 1 (TNA) – Thailand will host the 6th Meeting of the Joint Commission for Bilateral Cooperation between Thailand and Cambodia (Joint Commmission) on Tuesday and Wednesday at the Centara Grand Hotel in Bangkok.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Kasit Piromya is heading the Thai delegation and Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Hor Namhong (pictured) leads the Cambodian delegation.

The parties will review past cooperation and plan future collaboration, according to a Thai foreign ministry statement.

The meeting is a time for Thailand and Cambodia to strengthen relations, and further discuss issues raised during Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva’s official visit to Cambodia on June 12.

The program and activities of the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Thailand and Cambodia in 2010 are expected to be discussed.

The Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM) will be held Tuesday, and the Joint Commission will meet Wednesday.

The countries foreign ministers will sign an agreement on transferring sentenced prisoners and cooperating to enforce prison sentences.
The Joint Commission is responsible for supervising the bilateral relations between the two countries.

The meeting will address bilateral cooperation in politics, security, economics, society, science and technology.

The parties will also consider cooperation in multilateral frameworks such as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS), Emerald Triangle and the Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (ACMECS).