Tuesday, 10 August 2010

'Cambodia, Thailand need mediation'

via Khmer NZ

Tue, 10 Aug 2010

Cambodian soldiers patrol the border area.‎

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has called for international intervention to solve the border dispute with Thailand, saying the situation is heating up and could get much worse.

Hun Sen made the remarks during a meeting with foreign diplomats in Phnom Penh on Monday.

Warning of "bloodshed," the prime minister said that bilateral efforts to resolve the conflict with Thailand would not work and said that he has informed the United Nations that Thailand is threatening to use force to settle the dispute.

He also called on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to help resolve the issue.

"The issue is very hot. It may cause bloodshed," he added.

Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva reaffirmed the country's peaceful principles and intentions and said that Thailand is sending a letter to the UN to clarify its position on the border dispute.

The UN will be informed how Cambodia encroached upon Thai territory, he said, adding that Thailand had to protect its national interests.

Cambodia and Thailand have been locked in a border dispute since July 2008.

However, tension between the two nations over the disputed border flared up following protests in Bangkok by the royalist "Yellow Shirt" movement over the issue.

Troops from the two countries exchanged fire briefly on the border in June.

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