(Phnom Penh): Cambodian Senate President, Samdech Techo Hun Sen stated that the Emerald Triangle border area has been under Cambodian control since 1988. He questioned why Thailand is now demanding that Cambodia withdraw its troops.

Samdech Techo spoke on Monday (Jun. 2) during the inaugural joint congress of the National Assembly and Senate Cambodia–Thailand border dispute issue.

Samdech Techo emphasized that what pains him most is the loss of a Cambodian soldier. He recalled that the area in question has been under Cambodian control since 1988, when both he and Tea Banh were actively involved in operations there. At the time, the Khmer Rouge had heavily fortified the area, including parts now claimed by Thailand. Cambodian forces, alongside Lao and Vietnamese troops, launched joint military operations and seized a significant cache of weapons and ammunition. “Tea Banh has been there since 1988,” he stated. “So why, after all these years, is there now a call for us to withdraw our troops?”

Samdech Techo added that during recent negotiations, General Mao Sophan, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces and Commander of the Royal Cambodian Army, had reached a clear agreement with his Thai counterpart. However, the commander of Thailand’s 2nd army region later sent a letter to Thailand’s commander-in-chief, who then requested General Mao Sophan to withdraw Cambodian troops 200 meters from the area in question. In response, Samdech Techo stressed that Cambodia cannot withdraw from its own territory.

Samdech Techo Hun Sen also recalled that the border issue had previously been raised in 2011, during discussions with former Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, in the presence of the Indonesian prime minister, when Indonesia was chairing ASEAN. At that time, the Thai prime minister proposed that both sides withdraw troops from the area around the Preah Vihear Temple. Samdech Techo responded that Cambodia could not withdraw from its own land and that, in fact, Thailand should be the one to pull its troops out of the temple grounds.

Samdech Techo further underscored, “Nowhere in the world can a country be asked to withdraw troops from its own territory. Regarding the Emerald Triangle border area, the Chinese school there is ours; I’ve personally visited it. Just last night, I even posted photos from my field visit. I reviewed coordinates, including point 12.7 and other surrounding locations. The border doesn’t stop there. I went even farther beyond that.”
=FRESH NEWS