(Tboung Khmum): Cambodian Minister of National Defence Tea Seiha unveiled the Thai military’s hypocritical conduct amid the ongoing border dispute with Cambodia. Referring to the armed clash on 28 May, he noted that the Thai side not only failed to offer condolences for the death of a Cambodian soldier in the Emerald Triangle area, but also accused Cambodia of initiating the gunfire.
The minister spoke on Friday (Jun. 20) during the 48th anniversary of the Remembrance Day of “Journey to Overthrow the Pol Pot Genocidal Regime” held in Tboung Khmum.
According to Minister Tea Seiha, tensions in the Emerald Triangle area escalated after a joint-use facility in the zone was destroyed by fire. This incident Thailand blamed on Cambodia. However, he clarified that available evidence indicates the fire was caused by a forest blaze. Thailand has long claimed the facility is located on its side of the border.
“We continued negotiations on this matter, but unfortunately, on 28 May, a confrontation occurred, resulting in the death of one of our soldiers. Not only did Thailand fail to offer any condolences, they also issued a statement accusing Cambodia of firing first,” the minister underscored.
Minister Tea Seiha rejected Thailand’s claims, asserting that Cambodian troops, when engaged in combat, would be in proper military uniform. He emphasised that the fallen soldier on 28 May was not even in uniform at the time of his death. “My soldier died out of uniform, yet they still accuse Cambodia of initiating the attack,” he said.
Following the incident, the Cambodian defence minister contacted his Thai counterpart, who expressed regret over the confrontation. A meeting between ground forces from both sides was held on 29 May.
“There are two kinds of war. One fought with weapons and the other with media. After the discussion between ground commanders, both countries released statements. Thailand issued three points, and Cambodia issued four. They questioned why we released four points,” Minister Tea Seiha explained.
Minister Tea Seiha clarified that although both sides had agreed on three points during the meeting, Cambodia felt compelled to add a fourth. “We made it clear that we could not withdraw our troops from the conflict area in the Emerald Triangle area, as it is Cambodian territory. Thailand’s statement omitted this, so we added a fourth point in our release to affirm our position,” he continued.
He further revealed that a closed-door meeting between the two defence ministers later took place in Thailand’s Sa Kaeo province. During the meeting, the Thai side proposed a minor repositioning of Cambodian troops to prevent future clashes, but this proposal was firmly rejected by Minister Tea Seiha.
Subsequently, the Thai minister of defence asked Tea Seiha to report the matter to Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet. However, before any official report had reached Phnom Penh, Thai media falsely claimed that Cambodia had agreed to withdraw its troops. This prompted an official rebuttal from the Cambodian side.
Tea Seiha concluded that the Cambodian Ministry of National Defence’s press statement refuting the false claims led to Thailand’s unilateral closure of the border and resulted in the mobilisation of troops on both sides along the frontier.
=FRESH NEWS
