(Phnom Penh): Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet announced a plan to refer Cambodia’s ongoing border disputes with Thailand—centred on the Ta Moan Thom Temple, Ta Moan Toch Temple, Ta Krabey Temple, and the Emerald Triangle area—to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), as tensions in the region escalate.

In a statement posted Sunday (Jun. 1) on social media, Samdech Thipadei directed the Joint Commission on the Demarcation of Land Boundary (JBC) to carry out two key tasks:

First, to convene a JBC meeting with the Thai side in order to address ongoing border issues and to resume the work of boundary demarcation and the installation of border markers between the two countries.

Second, to include in the meeting agenda the proposal to summit the disputes over Ta Moan Thom Temple, Ta Moan Toch Temple, Ta Krabey Temple, and the Emerald Triangle area to the ICJ.

Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet also emphasised that rising tensions in the Emerald Triangle area—particularly around the Ta Moan Thom and Ta Moan Toch temples—are being inflamed by extremist factions on both sides promoting nationalist sentiment. He warned that this could reignite confrontations in the future.

Samdech Thipadei expressed hope that both sides would work together to resolve disputes in these sensitive areas and continue technical efforts on boundary demarcation and the placement of border markers in unresolved areas, using peaceful means grounded in technical assessments and international law.

Nevertheless, the premier reiterated that while Cambodia remains committed to resolving border disputes peacefully through technical mechanisms and legal frameworks, it reserves the right to defend its territorial integrity by all necessary means — including the use of armed forces — should there be any attempt to violate Cambodian sovereignty through military force.
=FRESH NEWS