Thai, Cambodian envoys set temple talks

SISAKET PROVINCE, Thailand (CNN) -- The foreign ministers of Thailand and Cambodia will meet Monday in an effort to resolve a week-long military standoff over an ancient border temple that sits on disputed land, Thailand's prime minister said Thursday.

The meeting will take place in Siem Reap, Cambodia one day after Cambodia's general election on Sunday, Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej told CNN.

An eight-hour meeting between Thai and Cambodian officials ended earlier this week with both sides agreeing on only one point: that troops each country has amassed at the site of the Preah Vihear temple will not fire on each other, the Thai News Agency reported.

The site of Monday's meeting is closer to the better-known Angkor Wat temple in Cambodia.

For now, the countries are seeking regional intervention from their Southeast Asian neighbors.

Foreign ministers of the 10 countries that comprise the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are meeting in Singapore this week.

Sundaravej spoke to his Cambodian counterpart, Hun Sen, on Thursday to arrange next week's high-level meeting. He said Hun agreed to stop pursuing the issue at the U.N. Security Council. Cambodia had sent a letter to the council to call attention to the standoff.

As a result, the Security Council postponed a meeting planned for next week on the tensions, the council's president, Vietnamese ambassador Le Luong Minh, said Thursday.

The dispute is over an 11th century temple to which Cambodia and Thailand both lay claim. It sits atop a cliff on Cambodian soil but has its most accessible entrance on the Thai side.

The International Court of Justice awarded the temple to Cambodia in 1962. Thailand claims, however, that the 1.8 square mile (4.6 sq. km) area around it was never fully demarcated.

Thailand says the dispute arose from the fact that the Cambodian government used a map drawn during the French occupation of Cambodia -- a map that places the temple and surrounding area in Cambodian territory.

This month, the U.N. approved Cambodia's application to have the temple listed as a World Heritage Site -- places that have outstanding cultural value.

The decision reignited tensions, with some in Thailand fearing it would make it difficult for their country to lay claim to disputed land around the temple.

Opposition parties in Thailand used the issue to attack the government, which initially backed the heritage listing.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, who has been in power since the mid-1980s, has portrayed the U.N. recognition as a national triumph in the run-up to the general elections.

The current flare-up began July 15, when Cambodian guards briefly detained three Thais who crossed into the area. Once they were let go, the three refused to leave the territory.

Cambodia claims Thailand sent troops to retrieve the trio and gradually built up their numbers. Thailand denies that, saying its troops are deployed in Thai territory. Read more!

Cambodia asks UN to put off border dispute meet: diplomat

UNITED NATIONS (AFP) — Cambodia has asked the UN Security Council to postpone a formal meeting on its tense military standoff with Thailand pending talks next week between the two countries' foreign ministers, Vietnam's UN envoy said Thursday.

Le Luong Minh, who chairs the council this month, said he received a letter from the Cambodian UN mission asking him to put off the meeting "pending the result of the meeting between the two foreign ministers."

"I received a letter informing me that Prime Minister Hun Sen of Cambodia has agreed with Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej of Thailand that there will be a meeting between the foreign ministers on July 28 to find a peaceful solution to the situation," he noted.

As a result, the Cambodians wanted a council meeting postponed, he added.

Some 4,000 Thai and Cambodian soldiers are facing off over a small patch of land near the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple , in one of the most dangerous flare-ups of regional tensions in decades.

More than 500 Thai and 1,000 Cambodian troops are stationed around a small Buddhist pagoda in a disputed patch of land on a mountain slope leading to the temple, which is owned by Cambodia.

Wednesday, the council held a preliminary discussion on Cambodia's request for a meeting of the powerful 15-member body but decided to revisit the issue Thursday as some delegations sought instructions from their capitals on how to proceed.

"We are worried about the situation," France's UN Ambassador Jean-Maurice Ripert said. "We think the council should meet as fast as possible" to deal seriously with this formal request from a member state.

Ripert said that France backed a mediation by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), of which both Cambodia and Thailand are members.

But he made clear that the Security Council, as a guarantor of international peace and security, had "to assume its responsibility" to help reduce tension, given the risk of a deteriorating situation "with serious consequences".

Thailand and Cambodia earlier Thursday announced they would resume high-level talks in the Cambodian town of Siem Reap on July 28 to try to settle their dispute.

And Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo said Thursday it was "premature" to bring the Thailand-Cambodia border dispute to the UN Security Council and urged more bilateral efforts between the rivals.

Yeo said that both sides were urged to exercise restraint when the issue was discussed during the just concluded ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF).

All 27 members of ARF "called for restraint, a speedy resolution and to maintain the status quo," Yeo told reporters.

Earlier Thursday, Cambodia called for all soldiers to be withdrawn from the disputed border area near the ancient temple at the center of the week-long military standoff with Thailand.

Talks aimed at resolving the crisis ended without resolution on Monday, raising fears that the crisis could erupt in violence.
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Thailand, Cambodia to meet over disputed land

Cambodia has agreed to meet Monday with Thailand to discuss a stretch of disputed land near a historic temple, rather than take the matter to the U.N. officials from both countries said Thursday.

Thai Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej said he talked to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and the two leaders decided to schedule a foreign ministers' meeting in the Cambodian city of Siem Reap on Monday.

They plan to discuss how best to end the crisis over land near the 11th century temple of Preah Vihear that led both countries to deploy soldiers near the site.

Cambodian Information Minister Khieu Kanharith confirmed the meeting would take place and "postpone the complaint to the Security Council."

Monday's meeting follows failed efforts earlier this week to resolve the crisis, which prompted Cambodia to take the issue to the U.N. Security Council.

Military tensions between the two countries over 1.8 square miles of land intensified earlier this month after UNESCO approved a Cambodian application to have the temple designated a World Heritage Site.

Thailand sent troops to the border July 15 after anti-government demonstrators attacked Thai Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej's government for supporting Cambodia's application. It claims they were deployed only after 1,000 Cambodian troops were spotted in the area. The troops were protecting a demining team, which was sent there after a Thai soldier stepped on a land mine, officials said.

The announcement would seem to be a small diplomatic victory for Thailand, which had rejected Cambodian requests to involve the U.N. and the grouping of Southeast Asian nations in the matter. Thailand's U.N. ambassador, Don Pramudwinai, accused Cambodia on Wednesday of bringing the quarrel before the Security Council because "the Cambodian target is not only Preah Vihear but the entire common border."

Cambodian says some 4,000 troops from both countries are massed in the area around Preah Vihear. Thailand says it has 400 troops in the area and that Cambodia has 1,700.

Don said Cambodia was trying to force Thailand to accept a French colonial map's demarcation of the border.

Thailand relies on a different map drawn up later with American technical assistance, but accepts a ruling by the International Court of Justice that awarded the disputed temple to Cambodia in 1962.

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Cambodia, Thailand agree more temple talks

By Ek Madra

PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Cambodia accused Thailand on Thursday of sending more troops to their joint border as a smoldering dispute over a 900-year-old temple showed no signs of easing.
"Thailand has continued to increase its military build-up," government spokesman Khieu Kanharith told a news conference in Phnom Penh, labeling Bangkok the aggressor in a spat that has sparked fears of a military clash.

"The situation is not easing," Kanharith said, adding that Cambodia had 800 soldiers along the border compared with around 3,000 Thai troops.

The Thai Foreign Ministry said Bangkok had only 400 men facing as many as 1,700 Cambodian soldiers. Both sides have moved artillery into the area, occupied by remnants of Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge guerrilla army in the 1980s and 1990s.

At the heart of the dispute is a 1.8 square mile stretch of scrubland around the Preah Vihear temple on a jungle-clad escarpment that forms a natural boundary between the southeast Asian countries.

The temple itself is claimed by both countries but was awarded to Cambodia in 1962 by the International Court of Justice in The Hague, a ruling that has rankled in Thailand ever since.

France and Vietnam said on Wednesday the United Nations Security Council would hold a special meeting in response to a Cambodian request for it to take up the issue, although it was not clear if it would lead to formal Council involvement.

Thailand said it wanted the issue to be resolved on a bilateral basis, and it played down Phnom Penh's claims of rising tensions ahead of a general election on Sunday in Cambodia, where nationalism is a frequently played political card.

France and Vietnam said on Wednesday the United Nations Security Council would hold a special meeting in response to a Cambodian request for it to take up the issue, although it is not clear if it will lead to formal Council involvement.

But Thailand said it had the support of China, Russia, the United States, Vietnam and Indonesia against the need for Security Council intervention.

Even if it did step into the imbroglio, it is not clear what the U.N. could do other than issue a statement telling Bangkok and Phnom Penh to sort out the kafuffle.

The chairman of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) said on Thursday there was no need to involve the U.N. in what should be a bilateral matter.

"It should not have to go to the U.N. Security Council," George Yeo, who is also Singapore's foreign minister, told reporters at an ASEAN meeting on Thursday.

"We should not let a small issue -- that was a non-issue in the past -- become a big issue."

Politics has played a key role in fuelling the fracas on both sides of the border.

Nationalism frequently rears its head in Cambodia, especially around election time, and there is a general election in the country on Sunday.

But analysts say domestic Thai politics are mainly to blame for the eruption of the dispute, which stems from Cambodia's successful bid to have the ruins listed as a World Heritage site, a source of pride for Cambodia but an outrage for many Thais. Continued...

Bangkok's initial support for the heritage listing was seized on by anti-government groups who whipped up a nationalist fervor in their attempt to unseat the government of Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej. His foreign minister resigned over the issue. Read more!

US says it will be guided by regional views in dealing with Thai-Cambodia dispute

SINGAPORE: The United States will be guided by the views of Southeast Asian countries in assessing a simmering Thai-Cambodia border dispute if it comes up for mediation in the U.N. Security Council, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Thursday.

The border confrontation between Thailand and Cambodia is over a piece of land around an ancient Hindu temple that was designated a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO. Thailand feared that such a designation would affect its claim over surrounding land.

Earlier this week, Cambodia wrote a letter to the United Nations seeking its intervention.

"We're going to be guided very heavily by the views of the countries in this region," Rice, whose country is a permanent member of the Security Council, told reporters during a visit to Singapore.

Rice's comments came hours after Thai Deputy Prime Minister Sahas Bunditkul said the U.S. and two other permanent members of the Security Council, China and Russia, had indicated to him that Cambodia had been too hasty in approaching the world body.

Rice, who is here to attend a security conference, did not directly comment on Sahas' statement but said she made it clear to Southeast Asian countries that the U.S. "will be very much interested in and, in fact, guided by the regional assessment of what needs to be done here," she said.

She noted the issue "hasn't really been taken up before the (U.N. Security) Council yet although there has been a potential request passed."

But "we'll continue to consult with the regional states," she said.

Thousands of troops have been amassed along the border in a tense standoff for just over a week. Cambodia has asked the Security Council to hold an emergency meeting next week to resolve the problem, a move that has irritated Thailand. It says the matter should be resolved bilaterally.

Thailand has also not allowed the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, to mediate in the dispute.

French U.N. Ambassador Jean-Maurice Ripert said Wednesday the 15-nation Security Council "should meet as fast as possible" based on Cambodia's request.

"We are in charge of peace and security, so, if we can diffuse the tensions and if we can prevent any development that could be dramatic for the region and for peace and security, we will do it and we think we have to do it," he said.

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Thailand lobbies for UN backing

Says border row must be resolved bilaterally

THANIDA TANSUBHAPOL & WASSANA NANUAM

Thailand lobbied members of the United Nations Security Council yesterday, seeking support for its position that the row with Cambodia over a disputed border area near Preah Vihear temple should be resolved through bilateral talks.

Deputy Prime Minister Sahas Bunditkul had separate meetings with the foreign ministers of China, Russia, the United States, Indonesia and Vietnam on the sidelines of the meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) in Singapore.

All five countries agreed Thailand and Cambodia should solve the conflict through bilateral talks, the Foreign Ministry quoted Mr Sahas as saying.

China, Russia and the US are Asean's dialogue partners and permanent members of the Security Council. Indonesia and Vietnam are non-permanent members. Vietnam chairs the council until the end of the month.

Bangkok-based diplomats from 13 countries sitting on the UN Security Council met with foreign affairs permanent secretary Virasakdi Futrakul at the Foreign Ministry yesterday.

They were told the dispute over the 4.6 square kilometre area at the border, between Si Sa Ket's Kantharalak district and Cambodia's Preah Vihear province, was a bilateral issue, the ministry said.

Only two Security Council members, Costa Rica and Burkina Faso, did not attend the meeting at the ministry. The two countries do not have embassies in Bangkok.

Thailand's meeting with the council members took place only hours before the council, sitting at the UN in New York, was scheduled to decide (early today Thai time) whether to put the border conflict on its agenda at the urging of Cambodia.

Thai ambassador to the UN Don Pramudwinai said from New York that he expected the council to accept the Cambodian request.

He said if the council agrees to consider the case, Thailand and Cambodia could be called to give information before council members on Monday.

The ambassador said Cambodia had tried to force Thailand to accept the 1904 map drawn by France in demarcating the area.

Thailand considers that map puts it at a disadvantage in any talks to settle the boundary with Cambodia near the temple because it does not use the watershed as the border line.

The General Border Committee (GBC), chaired by the two countries' defence ministers, is a key body for resolving border conflicts.

But talks between Supreme Commander Gen Boonsrang Niempradit and Cambodian Defence Minister Tea Banh on Monday in Aranyaprathet district of Sa Kaeo province failed. Another meeting is plannedr next month.

However, Mr Virasakdi told the 13 diplomats at the ministry that at least Thailand and Cambodia had agreed in Sa Kaeo that their soldiers would not use force and remain peacefully in the overlapping area.

Gen Boonsrang strongly opposed Cambodia's move to bring the issue to the UN Security Council. Doing so could make it difficult for the two countries to solve the problem, he said before leaving for Indonesia.

''The best way to solve the problem is for it to be resolved by the two countries. Third parties should not step in until there is a deadlock,'' he said.

Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej was optimistic about prospects for talks with Cambodia on the temple row after the election there set for Sunday.

Mr Samak said all moves made by Cambodia, including the remarks by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen that Thai soldiers were on its territory, were geared towards the poll.

Asean Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan said in Singapore that the group wanted the two countries to ''find their own solution at the bilateral level'' and avoid any action that could trigger a full-blown confrontation.


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Thais living on Cambodian border brace for clashes

Thai PM hopeful tensions would subside after Sunday’s election in Cambodia

KHAO PRA VIHARN: Thais living along the border with Cambodia began evacuation and weapon drills on Wednesday, fearing a land dispute might escalate into violence after talks failed this week.

In villages near the disputed Preah Vihear temple, where hundreds of Thai and Cambodian troops faced off for a ninth day on Wednesday, workers dug holes for new bomb shelters. They also renovated old bunkers dating back to the 1980s, when stray shells often landed during fighting between Khmer Rouge guerrillas and Cambodian government troops.

“We have nowhere to move to and we don’t want Cambodian infiltrators,” 79-year-old guard Mee Kaewsanga told Reuters, cradling a five-year-old pump-action shotgun. At the heart of the dispute is a 4.6 square kilometre area around the temple, which sits on a jungle-clad escarpment that forms a natural boundary and is claimed by both nations.

The build-up of troops and heavy artillery on both sides of the border has worried neighbouring countries and the United Nations, which Cambodia has appealed to for help. While there have been no major incidents at the temple so far, Thai border villages that are home to some 4,000 people are braced for the worst.

Cambodia elections: Authorities have begun arming volunteers with shotguns and training villagers how to defend against potential invaders. “We hope there won’t be any violence, but we can’t be complacent,” Prasert Aramsriworapong, an official in the border town of Kantaralak, told Reuters. In Bangkok, Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej said he believed tensions would ease after Sunday’s general election in Cambodia.

“After the elections, they will soften their stance and talks will be easier,” the pugnacious Thai leader said in Bangkok. “Everything has been done for the July 27 poll and I need to keep quiet so as not to discredit Prime Minister Hun Sen.” reuters
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NKorea, Thai-Cambodia flare-up dominate Asian security talks

SINGAPORE (AFP) — Foreign ministers from Asia and key world powers opened security talks here Thursday amid a simmering border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia and progress on North Korean denuclearisation.

The meeting of the 27-nation ASEAN Security Forum -- featuring Southeast Asian countries as well as the United States, Russia and the European Union -- came after an unprecedented meeting here Wednesday between US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her North Korean counterpart.

Asia's top security forum was held against the backdrop of the devastating Myanmar cyclone and Chinese earthquake in May, as well as a bitter territorial dispute between Thailand and Cambodia.

At a meeting here Wednesday of top diplomats trying to disarm North Korea, Rice pressed North Korean Foreign Minister Pak Ui-Chun to take new steps on denuclearisation but hailed the "good spirit" at the six-nation talks.

Rice shook hands twice with her "axis of evil" counterpart Pak at their first meeting, saying the negotiating partners "believe we've made progress" but urging Pyongyang to agree to a verification protocol on disarmament.

Foreign ministers from their six-party counterparts China, South Korea, Russia and Japan were also present at the informal meeting, the highest-level gathering of the group since the nuclear dialogue began in 2003.

"I don't think the North Koreans left with any illusions about the fact that the ball is in their court, and that everybody believes that they have got to respond and respond positively on verification," Rice said Thursday.

North Korea staged its first nuclear test in 2006 but in February the following year the hermit state agreed to drop its weapons programme in exchange for massive energy aid.

Pyongyang is expected to sign a non-aggression treaty with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) here later Thursday.

On the Thai-Cambodia border, hundreds of troops are facing off over a small patch of land near the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple, in one of the most dangerous flare-ups of regional tensions in decades.

More than 500 Thai troops and at least 1,000 Cambodian soldiers have been deployed near Preah Vihear but Cambodian officials said Wednesday that thousands more Thais were taking up positions at other spots along the border.

Phnom Penh has called for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to prevent armed conflict after an ASEAN ministerial meeting failed to broker a deal here earlier this week.

France's UN Ambassador Jean-Maurice Ripert said council members held a preliminary discussion late Wednesday but that the issue would be revisited Thursday as some delegations had no instructions on how to proceed.

"We are worried about the situation," he told reporters. "We think the council should meet as fast as possible."

Thailand insists the two sides should settle the matter without an outside mediator.

Disaster response was another major focus of the meeting in the wake of Cyclone Nargis which struck military-ruled Myanmar and the earthquake in southwest China in May, leaving a total of more than 200,000 people dead or missing.

ASEAN was criticised for failing to pressure member state Myanmar to open its borders to foreign relief workers in the immediate aftermath of the storm, but won over many of its critics by eventually leading a joint international aid effort.
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Cambodia to Open Bourse in 2009; Urges Corporate Transparency

By Netty Ismail and Yoolim Lee

July 24 (Bloomberg) -- Cambodia plans to open its first stock exchange and start a corporate bond market in the fourth quarter of 2009 in a bid to attract foreign funds to Southeast Asia's second-poorest nation, a government official said.

Six to 10 companies, with a combined market value of $200 million to $400 million, including Sokimex Group, the country's biggest petroleum company, and Acleda Bank Plc, its largest bank, will likely be listed on the exchange within a year of it being set up, Kao Thach, head of the Ministry of Economy and Finance's financial market division, said late yesterday.

Cambodia, which abolished money under the Khmer Rouge three decades ago, is seeking to lure foreign funds as economic growth slows after peaking at 13.5 percent in 2005. The government will need to improve the legal system and urge Cambodian companies to open their accounting records to investor scrutiny, said Agost Benard, who covers the country for Standard & Poor's.

``Given all the uncertainties and lack of transparency, at least initially, it will probably be the local people who are willing to take the punt,'' said Benard, associate director at the rating company in Singapore. ``International investors who expect higher standards of disclosure and transparency will take a wait-and-see attitude.''

The government last year asked more than 400 companies, most of which are family businesses, to get their financial statements audited to improve transparency, Thach, 34, said in an interview in Phnom Penh.

Local Rules

``Cambodia has been effectively cut off from the rest of the developed world for the past three decades, so a lot of business has been done based on unwritten local rules,'' said Marvin Yeo, co-founder of Frontier Investment & Development Partners in Phnom Penh.

Frontier Investment, a private-equity fund, is raising $250 million to put in the second-poorest of 10 Southeast Asian nations, and will cash out of some of its planned investments through listings on the exchange, Yeo said.

The listing requirements in Cambodia will likely be modeled on the Kosdaq, South Korea's second stock market that was set up 12 years ago for small- and medium-sized firms as well as venture start-ups, Thach said.

Companies seeking a Kosdaq listing need to be in business for at least three years with minimum paid-in capital of 500 million won ($495,417) and debt-to-equity ratio of less than 150 percent of the industry mean. Venture capital firms have less stringent requirements under the South Korean government's program to prop up smaller technology companies.

Raising Capital

South Korea's exchange is helping Cambodia set up its bourse. The Cambodian government, which will likely own at least 51 percent of the planned venture, and the operator of the Seoul-based bourse, Korea Exchange Inc., will begin discussions next month to decide on their shareholdings, Thach said.

The Cambodia Securities and Exchange Commission will likely be set up as early as September, Thach said.

``They're nowhere near getting the rules together, the criteria for listing, transparency, proper accounting,'' said John Brinsden, vice chairman of Acleda Bank, the largest Cambodian bank with 209 branches in 24 provinces.

Acleda Bank will ``need a lot of capital over the next few years'' as it opens more offices in Cambodia and neighboring countries including Laos, Brinsden said in Phnom Penh.

Sokimex, which has monopoly rights to ticket sales at the Angkor Wat ancient temple ruins in Siem Reap, plans to expand its hotel and resorts business, Chief Executive Officer Sok Kong said on the company's Web site.

Transparency Concerns

Other Cambodian companies considering initial public offerings include Canadia Bank Plc, Union Commercial Bank Plc and Mong Rithy Group, which has palm oil plantations in Sihanoukville, Thach said.

Royal Group, which owns the country's biggest mobile-phone operator and has a partnership with Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. in Cambodia, will consider a listing ``in the future,'' Chairman Kith Meng said in an interview in Phnom Penh.

Companies can sell shares or bonds in Cambodia's currency, the riel, or the dollar, which will mitigate any foreign exchange risk for international investors, Thach said.

Still, ``the biggest concern would be the credibility of the companies or their reporting standards,'' said Frontier Investment's Yeo. Transparency International, a private monitoring agency based in Berlin, ranked Cambodia 162nd of 179 countries in its annual report on perceptions of corruption last year.

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UN to take up Thai-Cambodian border dispute

By JOHN HEILPRIN

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — With some 4,000 troops massed along the Thai-Cambodian border, United Nations Security Council members say they will try to keep a standoff from escalating into war.

Diplomats said Wednesday they expect to call a special council session, probably next week, to deal with the latest dispute over land near the ancient temple of Preah Vihear. Cambodia has appealed to the U.N. Security Council to intervene, warning that the two sides were at "an imminent state of war."

The conflict is over an area less than two square miles around the temple that both nations claim as their own. The International Court of Justice awarded the temple to Cambodia in 1962, but its listing this month as a U.N. World Heritage Site has stirred tensions anew.

French U.N. Ambassador Jean-Maurice Ripert said the 15-nation council "should meet as fast as possible" based on Cambodia's request.

"We are in charge of peace and security," he said. "So, if we can diffuse the tensions and if we can prevent any development that could be dramatic for the region and for peace and security, we will do it and we think we have to do it."

Thailand sent troops to the border on July 15 after anti-government demonstrators attacked Thai Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej's government for supporting Cambodia's application to UNESCO, the U.N. agency that designates World Heritage Sites. There are now 878 sites on the global list, which helps draw attention to efforts to conserve them.

They say the temple's new status will undermine Thailand's claim to the land. Cambodia responded with its own deployment. The carved stone temple and buildings from the first half of the 11th century A.D. were built by cliffs overlooking mountains.

As the dispute entered its second week, Thailand accused Cambodia of eyeing even more of its land and leaflets appeared in the Cambodian capital calling for a boycott of Thai goods. Cambodian police were investigating the leaflets.

Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong said he had no choice but to appeal to the United Nations after discussions with Thailand on Monday failed to produce a breakthrough. He made a similar request to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, but the region's key bloc urged the two countries to continue bilateral negotiations.

Thailand's U.N. Ambassador Don Pramudwinai said Wednesday that Cambodia was bringing the quarrel before the Security Council because "the Cambodian target is not only Preah Vihear but the entire common border." Don told Bangkok's Business Radio that Cambodia was trying to force Thailand to accept a French colonial map that favors Cambodia.

Thailand relies on a different map drawn up later with American technical assistance.

Pramudwinai also told the Security Council in a letter Monday that "the boundary line claimed by Cambodia has no legal status" from the 1962 ruling, because he said that case dealt only with "sovereignty" — the question of who owns the temple.

Cambodia's U.N. Ambassador Sea Kosal wrote the council last Friday that "this Thai military provocation is aimed at creating a de facto 'overlapping area' that legally does not exist on Cambodia soil."

The two nations have built up about 4,000 troops in the area, with both sides insisting they won't resort to force. The atmosphere remained calm Wednesday among Cambodian and Thai troops at the hilltop temple, despite the intense diplomatic rhetoric by the respective governments.

Troops from both sides "continued interacting cordially," said Cambodian Brig. Gen. Chea Keo, without elaborating.

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Strong economy boosts Cambodia's ruling party ahead of polls

It is an old games, the notorious mafia regime is using intimidations, violence, force voters and falsefied documents are the key boosting Cambodia's ruling party ahead of polls. It is not a strong Economy.

PHNOM PENH (AFP) — Once sleepy streets in Cambodia's capital are crammed with construction sites, crowned by towering cranes building the first skyscrapers in the leafy, low-rise city.

Phnom Penh's building boom is one of the most visible signs of the sweeping changes in one of the world's poorest countries, which according to some estimates has averaged 11 percent economic growth over the last three years.

It's also a key reason why voters are expected to hand Prime Minister Hun Sen and his Cambodian People's Party (CPP) a victory in general elections on Sunday, analysts say.

"Generally we agree that economic growth in Cambodia is a very good sign" of the country's progress, said Yang Saing Koma, president of the Cambodian Centre for the Study and Development of Agriculture, which monitors the effects of the economy on the rural poor.

Thirty years ago Phnom Penh was almost deserted, after the Khmer Rouge forcibly evacuated the capital as they plunged the nation into the darkness of the "Killing Fields" that would claim up to two million lives.

They dismantled the economy and even banned the use of currency in a genocidal drive to create a Maoist agrarian utopia.

After the Khmer Rouge were forced from power, they continued to battle the government until 1996, leaving a shattered nation strewn with landmines and a population struggling to survive.

Now that's slowly changing.

Economic data on Cambodia remains sketchy, but international estimates agree that the country's growth in recent years has been among the strongest in Southeast Asia. Foreign investment, mainly from other Asian nations, is pouring into hydro-electric dams, property and tourism.

Tourism, which brought in 1.4 billion dollars last year, is expected to grow by at least 20 percent in 2008, according to the government.

The garment industry has also thrived, sheltered for years under a unique labour-friendly deal with the United States.

The growth has helped power the construction boom, with realtors estimating that prime pieces of property in the capital can fetch 3,000 dollars a square metre (yard), a six-fold increase from eight years ago.

But the growth also has a dark side. Soaring land values have resulted in mass evictions and land grabs in Phnom Penh.

The garment industry faces tough competition from China and Vietnam, creating fears of job losses in an industry that is the country's biggest private employer.

Corruption remains rampant, posing a drain especially for small entrepreneurs trying to start up local businesses that could help Cambodia end its dependence on imports for many basic goods, said Yang Saing Koma.

"You have to take a lot of time, and you have to pay extra money to get something done," he said.

Inflation, driven by high fuel and food prices, hit 18.7 percent in January and prices for staples such as rice have risen by as much as 80 percent. The government has since stopped releasing inflation data, drawing accusations that it's trying to hide the bad news.

"Income of the poor has to keep up with inflation," said Chan Sophal, head of the Cambodian Economic Association, warning that poor farmers were struggling to cope with rapidly rising prices.

Some 35 percent of the country's 14 million people live on under 50 US cents a day. Those people in desperate poverty spend most of their money on food, but are struggling to keep up with rising prices, he said.

Despite the troubles, Cambodians overall are still pleased with the visible signs of their nation's recovery -- the construction in Phnom Penh and the main tourist areas, as well as new roads and bridges spreading into the countryside, said political analyst Chea Vannath.

"Cambodia needs infrastructure, and that's what the ruling party provides to the people," she said. "The CPP gets support from the people for that."
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Cambodian residents leave home amid military buildup at border area with Thailand

After Thai soldier shot dead three Cambodianat Robieng check point, the Thai soldiers are continuing to intimidate million Khmer people.

PHNOM PENH, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Village people left their homes for relatives far away, as Cambodia and Thailand built up their military presence at the border area over bilateral land dispute, a village chief said Wednesday.

"People are afraid when they see the troops from both sides in their area near the Preah Vihear Temple. Thai troops are still deployed inside the Keo Sikha Kiri Svara Pagoda (some 300 meters away from the temple) and its adjacent places," Bun Leng, chief of Preah Vihear Village in eponymous province, told Xinhua over phone.

"They fear armed confrontation," he added.

Military standoff between Cambodia and Thailand entered into the eighth day, as both governments dismissed any possibility of evacuation but instead submitted different versions of maps to prove their legal possession of the 4.6-square-kilometer land nearthe temple.

Thai troops were reportedly over 500 with tanks and artillery, while Cambodian some 1,000. However, Phay Siphan, spokesman of theCouncil of Ministers of Cambodia, refused to confirm the figures.

"Each side has at least about 100 troops inside the Keo Sikha Kiri Svara Pagoda," he told Xinhua.
The general situation inside and in the vicinity of the pagoda is calm and both sides don't have weapons inside, as the governments have agreed not to cause violence and armed confrontation, he said.

"Cambodia can control the situation along its border and our troops are also deployed at other places to guarantee safety and security for our people," he added.

Bun Leng said that Khmer-speaking Thai troops dug military bunkers at their side and it looked like they wanted to fight withthe Cambodians.

Thai troops had clear strategies to block Cambodians from accessing the Preah Vihear Temple, because the pagoda stood on the way to it, he said.

Both troops haven't mobilized so far, but Cambodian soldiers started to send short messages to tell their friends and relatives to boycott Thai products, he added.

However, "people here need normal lives, so that they can make business with Thais near the border as they used to do," he said.

Cambodian tycoon Kith Meng, who runs TV channels and mobile phone service, arrived at the border Wednesday morning to donate food, raincoats and camp tents for Cambodian troops, he said.

Tuesday, officials from the Royal Palace of Cambodia also brought some food and materials for the people and troops, he added.

Earlier Wednesday, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) stated that it failed to mediate between the two ASEAN members, saying that it would adversely affect the regional organization.

The UN Security Council is reportedly to convene an urgent meeting Thursday to find peaceful solution to the ongoing stalemate.

As Thailand refused to evacuate the alleged Cambodian territory,the Cambodian government has written letters this week to ASEAN, UNESCO and UN Security Council to ask for help and justice.

On Monday, bilateral top-level talks in Thailand failed to reach any agreement to end the military face-off.

In 1962, the International Court of Justice awarded the 11-century classic Khmer-style Preah Vihear Temple, together with the land it occupies, to Cambodia.

On July 7, the temple was listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO's World Heritage Committee.

On July 15, three Thai protesters trespassed the border to reclaim the temple, but were immediately arrested.

Thai troops then came in to fetch them, thus triggering standoff with Cambodian soldiers there. Military force was then built up on daily basis until the current scale.
Read more!

U.N. council to take up Cambodia-Thai dispute

By Louis Charbonneau

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The U.N. Security Council will hold a special meeting on a border dispute between Cambodia and Thailand that has sparked fears of a military clash, diplomats said on Wednesday.

Several council diplomats said the meeting would most likely be held next week. Its format has yet to be determined and it was unclear what exactly the council could do.

"Perhaps we could urge the two sides to work out their differences amicably," one Western diplomat told Reuters.

The U.N. Security Council is the world's top body for issues related to international peace and security.

On Tuesday foreign ministers from the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) meeting in Singapore failed to reach a consensus on whether ASEAN should get involved.

At the heart of the dispute is a 4.6 sq km (1.8 sq mile) area around the Preah Vihear temple on a jungle-clad escarpment on the Thai-Cambodian border, which forms a natural boundary and is claimed by both nations.

A build-up of troops and heavy artillery on both sides of the border has worried neighboring countries and the United Nations, which Cambodia has appealed to for help.

While there have been no major incidents at the temple so far, Thai border villages that are home to some 4,000 people are braced for a possible conflict. Continued...

Analysts say Thai politics bear much of the blame for the dispute over the temple, which an international court awarded to Cambodia in 1962. The ruling still rankles with many Thais.

Preah Vihear's listing as a World Heritage site this month inspired pride and joy in Cambodia, but triggered political uproar in Thailand.

Bangkok's initial support for the heritage listing has been used by anti-government groups to stoke nationalist passions in Thailand and fuel street protests against Thai Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej.

(Additional reporting by Sukree Sukplang in Thailand; Editing by David Storey) Read more!

Thai says Cambodia using 'guerrilla tactics' in temple dispute

Don Pramudwinai is just a loud mouth interloper who could not lead with his deteriorating country issues and trying cause problem to the neighbour. A century-old map is still a map of sovereignty of Cambodia. The Country was not shrunk by itself, Thailand had been moving its border deep inside Cambodia territory. It is not just Preah Vihea temple that belong to Cambodia, all temples and lot of provinces in Thailand are belong to former Khmer Empire.

BANGKOK: The Thai ambassador to the United Nations accused Cambodia on Wednesday of employing diplomatic "guerrilla tactics" in a dispute over an ancient temple to try to redraw the countries' 800-kilometer border.

The ambassador, Don Pramudwinai, said the Cambodians were using a century-old map of the disputed temple, drawn up when Cambodia was a French colony, in a broader plan to gain more territory.

"Sometimes our sincere friendship has prompted us to overlook our neighbors' ultimate motive," the ambassador told a Thai radio station, speaking from New York, where Cambodia has asked the UN Security Council to help resolve the dispute.

"In this case they are using guerrilla tactics to ambush us," he said. About 4.6 square kilometers, or 1.8 square miles, of land around the temple form one of 16 sites along the border that involve overlapping territorial claims between the two nations.

Hundreds of Thai and Cambodian soldiers remained camped at the 900-year-old temple, perched high on an escarpment in the Dangrek Mountains, which form part of the border. On Tuesday, the Cambodian foreign minister, Hor Namhong, said international mediation was needed because the two nations were in an "imminent state of war."

Sovereignty over the 11th-century temple, Preah Vihear, has been in dispute since the withdrawal of the French in the 1950s. Although it is easily accessible only from the Thai side, the International Court of Justice awarded sovereignty over the temple to Cambodia in 1962.

Despite the ambassador's rhetorical escalation, the usually blunt-spoken Thai prime minister, Samak Sundaravej, played down the dispute on Wednesday, predicting tensions would ease after the general election in Cambodia on Sunday.

"After the elections they will soften their stance, and talks will be easier," he said. "Everything has been done for the July 27 poll, and I need to keep quiet so as not to discredit Prime Minister Hun Sen" of Cambodia.

The two sides met on Monday but failed to resolve the dispute, which began earlier this month when Unesco listed the temple as a World Heritage Site based on an application from Cambodia and using the map supplied by Cambodia.

Both nations were at a meeting Wednesday in Singapore of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, where diplomats from neighboring nations urged them to find a peaceful solution.

But in both nations the continuing standoff was inflaming nationalist feelings that have flared into localized violence in the past. Opposition politicians in both countries are accusing their governments of being soft in their dealings over the temple.

Despite Samak's words, it is his own government that is under the greater stress from its opposition, for whom the temple is the latest issue in a long-running campaign that has already caused the resignation of a cabinet minister.

These critics accuse the government of selling out Thai heritage to further business interests of the former prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a coup in 2006 but whose supporters now control the government.

The National Counter Corruption Commission has begun to investigate Samak and his cabinet over accusations that the government violated the Thai Constitution by supporting Cambodia's application for a World Heritage listing without consulting Parliament. In principle, the investigation could lead to the impeachment of the entire government. Read more!

UN Security Council to discuss Thai-Cambodia dispute: ambassador

BANGKOK (AFP) — The UN Security Counil is expected to discuss a tense military standoff between Cambodia and Thailand this week, Thailand's ambassador to the United Nations said Wednesday.

Don Pramudwinai said the Security Council meeting on Thursday was set to discuss the week-long issue involving troops from both countries facing off near an ancient temple on their border.

"I have been informed that the UN has included Preah Vihear (temple) on the emergency agenda to be discussed at the Security Council meeting tomorrow (Thursday)," he told reporters here.

The comments follow a call from the Cambodian government on Tuesday for the world body to help broker a solution to the standoff.

Two days of diplomacy between the countries failed to make any headway in the controversy centred on disputed land around the ruins of the 11th century Hindu temple overlooking Cambodia's jungle.

More than 500 Thai troops are facing off against at least 1,000 Cambodian soldiers over the small patch of land near the temple, that belongs to Cambodia but has sparked decades of tensions with Thailand.

Thailand's chief negotiator to the crisis called for a leaders' summit, saying an existing General Border Committee (GBC) of officials from the two countries would not be enough to solve the problem.

"It's unlikely that the conflict could be settled at the GBC meeting," he told reporters.

"At this stage I think it's rather the leaders who must hold a summit as they are the decision makers," Boonsrang said, adding that Thai troops had been ordered to remain peaceful.

Thailand and Cambodia both claim their soldiers remain on their own soil, stationed by a small Buddhist pagoda at the foot of the mountain leading to the Preah Vihear temple.

Boonsrang also said there was now urgent need for Thailand to appoint a new foreign minister to tackle the dispute after Noppadon Pattama resigned in a legal battle two weeks ago.

The dispute erupted after three nationalist Thai protesters were arrested last week for jumping a barbed-wire fence to reach the temple, prompting armed troops to head to the border.

The World Court ruled in 1962 that Preah Vihear belongs to Cambodia. But the easiest entrance lies in Thailand. Read more!

SE Asian nations fail to win Thai-Cambodia breakthrough

Southeast Asian nations have failed to mediate a smouldering border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia, which grabbed most of the attention at a meeting of Asia-Pacific powers.

Foreign ministers from the Association of South East Asian Nations met their counterparts from China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand for talks ranging from North Korea nuclear diplomacy to food and energy security.

But with Thailand and Cambodia in a military showdown over an 11th-century temple on their border claimed by both nations, Asean has been distracted geopolitical issues by one of the periodic intramural spats that feeds scepticism about the 41-year-old group's ambitions to become a coherent political and economic bloc.

Asean foreign ministers offered their good offices at a working lunch on Tuesday after Thailand and Cambodia sent hundreds of soldiers and heavy artillery to their border in recent days.

Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo, host for this year's Asean ministerial meeting, said both sides "reiterated they were committed to a peaceful resolution of the issue", and another meeting of their General Border Commission to discuss the issue "would be held in the near future."

But no consensus could be reached for Asean to get involved, Yeo said in a statement.

Thailand would prefer trying to settle the issue bilaterally before asking Asean's help, a Thai official told reporters after the lunch.

Singapore's foreign ministry spokesman Andrew Tan said the two sides would likely meet again after Cambodia's general election on Sunday, outside the "intense media glare" and political pressures that are fueling emotions. "You need to give them some space to manage this issue."

The dispute is testing Asean's unity while it is in the midst of ratifying a charter that would turn the 41-year-old grouping into an EU-style, rules-based organisation.

"The border engagement is not only relevant in terms of the problem that we see between the two states, but also it could be a test to Asean," said Malaysian Foreign Minister Rais Yatim.

The fracas did manage to shove Myanmar out of the spotlight it usually occupies with great uneasiness at Asean meetings.

The meetings began with a rare ray of optimism on Sunday from the country's junta, which seemed to indicate detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi could be freed in about six months.

But Myanmar Foreign Minister Nyan Win soon dashed such hopes saying his remarks had been misunderstood and Suu Kyi would stay in detention until at least May of 2009.

That clarification came as Asean urged Myanmar to "take bolder steps" towards a peaceful transition to democracy and to release all political detainees, including Suu Kyi.

That was the first time Asean had ever specifically mentioned Suu Kyi in one of its communiques, diplomats said.

At the broader meeting of East Asian ministers on Tuesday, discussion focused on energy and food security.

"Many expressed the concern that the two were linked," the Singapore foreign ministry spokesman said.

The ministers also recognised that efforts to boost biofuels had to be done responsibly and not at the expense of food security, he said.

That marked a subtle but significant shift from 18 months ago, when Asean – whose member nations are big producers of palm oil and sugar cane – was backing a move into biofuels, which can use those commodities as feed stock.

North Korean nuclear diplomacy will take centre stage on Wednesday when US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice meets North Korean Foreign Minister Pak Ui Chun along with the foreign ministers from China, Japan, South Korea and Russia – who together make up the "six party" nuclear talks.

"It's very significant because this is probably the first time the foreign ministers from the six parties are having such a meeting," China's Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi told reporters after talks with his Japanese counterpart.

"I think it will be beneficial to pushing forward the progress of the six-party talks."

Read more!

Thai, Cambodian forces build up along border: Cambodia

PREAH VIHEAR, Cambodia (AFP) — Thailand and Cambodia have built up forces at more points along their common border, stepping up a week-long standoff over disputed territory, Cambodian officials said Wednesday.

More than 500 Thai troops are facing off against at least 1,000 Cambodian soldiers over a tiny area of land near the ancient Preah Vihear temple, but thousands more Thai troops have been positioned along the border, they said.

"There are about 1,000 Thai troops in their territory -- there's a military build-up there," said Cambodian cabinet spokesman Phay Siphan, who estimated about 4,000 Thai troops in total have gathered across the entire border.

But Thailand denied it was reinforcing the frontier.

"Thailand has not been building up forces along the border," deputy army spokeswoman Colonel Sirichan Ngathong told AFP.

"We maintain the same amount of soldiers, and more than 400 soldiers were sent to the overlapping area."

Cambodian officials said both sides had sent more troops and heavy weapons to a spot near the former Khmer Rouge stronghold Anlong Veng, where there is also disputed territory.

"There are more (Thai) troops now at Anlong Veng than there are here (at Preah Vihear). There are tanks and artillery," said a military official on condition of anonymity.

Cambodia has also sent heavy weapons to the area, said the Cambodian colonel, who has close ties to Thai armed forces

In neighbouring Banteay Meanchay province, police chief Hun Hean said Thailand had increased its troop presence directly across the border by up to 600 since the standoff began July 15.

Thailand and Cambodia have both stationed troops on a small piece of disputed soil near a small Buddhist pagoda at the foot of the mountain leading to the 11th century Preah Vihear temple.

Although Thailand says it wants to solve the dispute through bilateral talks, Thailand's UN ambassador said the issue would be raised at a meeting of the UN Security Council on Thursday at Cambodia's request.

The dispute erupted after three nationalist Thai protesters were arrested last week for jumping a barbed-wire fence to reach the temple, prompting armed troops to head to the border.
Read more!

ASEAN grapples with Thai-Cambodia dispute after issuing rebuke to Myanmar

SINGAPORE: Southeast Asian nations grappled Tuesday with the vexing issue of democracy in Myanmar and a simmering border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia ahead of a key security meeting of regional superpowers.

Thailand and Cambodia are locked in a dangerous military standoff over a piece of land near an ancient temple. Bilateral talks on Monday failed to resolve the dispute.

"What we need is for Cambodia and Thailand to really exercise their utmost restraint ... to prevent any outbreak of open conflict," Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda told reporters.

There must be a "cooling off" by the two sides, said Wirajuda, who is here to attend the annual foreign ministers' meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations through Thursday.

ASEAN's efforts on Myanmar also received a setback when the country's junta said pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi may be detained until late May 2009, rather than through the end of 2008, as had been reported earlier.

The clarification came as foreign ministers of ASEAN's remaining nine member countries on Monday "urged Myanmar to take bolder steps toward a peaceful transition to democracy in the near future."

ASEAN members usually avoid interfering in each other's domestic affairs, although that appears to be changing in a bid to give the group greater relevance.

A glimmer of hope for Suu Kyi's early release was raised on Sunday when the ministers thought they heard their Myanmar counterpart, Nyan Win, say at a dinner that the Nobel Peace laureate can be freed by December 2008.

But Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo, who passed on the remarks to the media, clarified the next day that Nyan Win had been misheard, and that the detention will last until at least November 2009.

Despite ASEAN's frustrations with the junta, the regional grouping has taken the lead in calling for international aid to help the victims of Cyclone Nargis, which devastated Myanmar's coastal regions in May.

On Monday, it released a joint report of a disaster assessment conducted with the United Nations and the Myanmar government, which says the survivors of the cyclone need at least US$1 billion in aid over the next three years.

Wirajuda said ASEAN expects to be contacted soon by the United Nations with a request to help resolve the Thai-Cambodia dispute over an area near a temple that was recently designated a World Heritage Site.

Cambodia's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday it had requested an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council for help in resolving the border issue. Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong also asked ASEAN host Singapore to form a regional inter-ministerial group to help end the crisis.

ASEAN "could not stand idly by without damaging its credibility," said Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. "The situation has escalated dangerously," he said.

Also Tuesday, ASEAN ministers will meet with their counterparts from China, Japan and South Korea for wider discussions on regional security. On top of the agenda is likely to be North Korea's nuclear program.

The topic will take center-stage at another meeting on the sidelines on Wednesday between U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, North Korean Foreign Minister Pak Ui Chun and their counterparts from China, Japan, South Korea and Russia — the participants in six-party nuclear talks.

It will be the highest-level meeting in the six-country negotiations, which began in 2003 with the aim of convincing North Korea to dismantle its nuclear program.

The meetings will culminate Thursday with the ASEAN Regional Forum, the premier security dialogue of Asia-Pacific between ASEAN and 16 other countries plus the European Union. It includes the United States and Russia.

Read more!

Ban asks Cambodia, Thailand to peacefully resolve temple issue

UNITED NATIONS: Expressing concern over heightening tension between Cambodia and Thailand over an ancient temple on their border, United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon has appealed both sides to peacefully resolve the issue.

Both countries lay claim over 4.6 square kilometres areas around the Preash Vihear Temple which was inscribed on the World Heritage List of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) earlier this month.

Hundreds of troops are facing each other raising fears of a possible flare up.

"The Secretary-General calls for restraint on both sides and hopes that this matter can be resolved peacefully and by diplomatic means in the context of the excellent relations between the two countries," Ban's spokesperson said.

The temple dates back to the 11th century and was recognised by the World Heritage Committee for "its natural situation on a promontory, with sheer cliffs overlooking a vast plain and mountain range; the quality of its architecture adapted to the natural environment and religious function of the temple; and, finally, the exceptional quality of the carved stone ornamentation of the temple."

Thailand and Cambodia had held talks yesterday on the issue but could not resolve it. Cambodia had complained to the UN Security Council Friday that Thailand had violated its sovereignty and called for UN intervention. Read more!

Cambodia seeks U.N. help in Thai temple row

By Melanie Lee

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Cambodia has asked the United Nations Security Council for an emergency meeting to resolve a military stand-off with Thailand over an ancient temple on their border.

Phnom Penh's appeal to the world body came after bilateral talks on Monday failed to end the week-long border fracas, which regional neighbors fear could turn violent.

"In order to avoid armed confrontation, the Royal Government of Cambodia has decided to request an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council to find a solution to the problem in accordance with international laws," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

The foreign ministers of Thailand and Cambodia were due to meet on the sidelines of a regional security meeting in Singapore later on Tuesday, Thai and Cambodian sources said.

The meeting will be chaired by Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo and is in response to a letter sent to him by Cambodia's government late on Monday, asking the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to intervene to cool escalating tensions between the neighbors.

"The meeting will be held at 12 p.m. (0400 GMT) today, and will be attended by the foreign ministers from Thailand and Cambodia and will discuss the situation over the temple," a Thai diplomatic source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Other ASEAN foreign ministers may also be at the meeting, an ASEAN official said.

At the heart of the dispute is a 4.6 sq km (1.8 sq mile) area around the 11th century Preah Vihear temple, which sits on a jungle-clad escarpment that forms a natural boundary and is claimed by both nations.

The 900-year-old temple was awarded to Cambodia by an international court in 1962.

The military showdown began a week ago when Thai troops moved into the disputed area after three Thai protesters were briefly detained there. Since then, both sides have sent hundreds more soldiers and heavy artillery to the border.

Cambodia has asked ASEAN to form an Inter-Ministerial Group of foreign ministers from Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam and Laos to "find a peaceful solution to the current crisis and to avoid a military confrontation between two ASEAN members".

ASEAN foreign ministers are holding their annual series of meetings first amongst themselves, then with Asia-Pacific powers culminating in the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), which has ambitions to deal with issues such a the Thai-Cambodia spat.

Monday's talks on the Thai-Cambodia border partly bogged down over which maps should be used to settle ownership of the temple and surrounding area, officials said. Read more!

Thai-Cambodia crisis talks end with no deal

ARANYAPRATHET, Thailand (AFP) — Talks between Cambodia and Thailand to resolve a military stand-off on their joint border ended Monday without a solution, defence officials from the two nations said.

After nearly eight hours in closed-door meetings in an eastern Thai town, the two sides agreed only that force must not be used to resolve the nearly week-long crisis over disputed land near the 11th century Preah Vihear temple .

"We both have legal problems of which we have informed our seniors to discuss," said Thai Supreme Commander General Boonsrang Niumpradit.

"We will both bring back the problems to our governments."

More than 500 Thai and 1,000 Cambodian troops are stationed around a small Buddhist pagoda on disputed land on a mountain slope leading to Preah Vihear, which is owned by Cambodia.
Read more!

Temple dispute talks start

Aranyaprathet - Senior Thai and Cambodian defence officials met on Monday to try and end a six-day military standoff near a prized temple on the border, but there was little sign of a swift resolution.

As more than 500 Thai and 1 000 Cambodian troops faced off on disputed land near the ancient Hindu temple, Cambodian Defence Minister Tea Banh sat down with senior Thai military officials in an eastern Thai border town.

"We believe they will accept our reasonable offers which will ease tension along the border," Thai Supreme Commander General Boonsrang Niumpradit said before going into the meeting.

He did not expand on Thailand's position, and officials refused to comment as closed-door talks continued into the afternoon in Aranyaprathet district, about 180km south of the disputed land.

Both countries have shown willingness to peacefully diffuse the territorial dispute, which saw weapons briefly drawn last week, and agreed at a regional meeting in Singapore late Sunday to "exert utmost efforts" to reach a deal.

Yet there appears to be little room for diplomatic manoeuvring, with letters exchanged between the country's leaders showing no change in their stances, which have been hardened by political developments in both nations.

Illegal incursion

Tensions flared last week when three Thais tried to enter Cambodia's Preah Vihear temple, and both sides have stationed troops around a small Buddhist pagoda on a mountain slope leading to the 11th century ruins.

In a letter obtained on Monday, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen told his Thai counterpart Samak Sundaravej that a map used in a World Court ruling shows the temple "is legally located approximately seven hundred metres inside Cambodian territory".

The International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 that the Preah Vihear temple belongs to Cambodia, but 4.6 square kilometres of land surrounding the Khmer ruins remains in dispute.

Cambodia maintains that Thai troops are trespassing on their territory, and has sent a letter to the United Nations to try and draw attention to what it says is an illegal incursion.

Thailand insists the land around the temple is theirs.

Brigadier Chea Keo, commander of Cambodian forces in the disputed area, said that the deputy commander in chief of the Cambodian army had toured the area around Preah Vihear on Monday.

"Kun Kim just came to visit the troops and told the troops to be patient and keep the work for the government to solve," he said.

Heritage status

On Sunday, Chea Keo said he had "very little hope" in the talks.

Recent tensions between the neighbours began with Cambodia's moves to have Preah Vihear listed as a United Nations World Heritage Site.

UN cultural body Unesco earlier this month finally granted heritage status to the temple perched on a cloud-covered jungle mountaintop, sparking an outcry from nationalist groups in Thailand who are battling Samak's government.

Read more!

Asean Ministers Meet to Discuss Thai-Cambodia Tensions, Myanmar

By Shamim Adam

July 21 (Bloomberg) -- Southeast Asian foreign ministers meeting today may focus on diffusing tensions over a border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia, and will deliver an assessment of humanitarian efforts to victims of Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar.

Thailand and Cambodia have sent more troops to a disputed border region near an 11th century temple called Preah Vihear, according to media reports. Foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations meeting in Singapore were briefed on developments yesterday, and urged the two sides to find ways to ``defuse the situation.''

``The situation has escalated dangerously with troops from both sides faced off on disputed territory near the Preah Vihear temple,'' Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said today. Asean cannot ``stand idly by without damaging its credibility.''

The 10-member bloc will also issue a report on the assessment of conditions in Myanmar areas hit by Cyclone Nargis. The regional group helped persuade Myanmar's junta leaders to allow foreign aid into the country and led humanitarian efforts after the cyclone struck in May.

Asean, which agreed to form a charter last year to make it a rules-based group, has long been criticized by Western nations for failing to press Myanmar to restore democracy and censure the junta for inflicting alleged human rights abuses.

Aung San Suu Kyi

The military, which has ruled the country formerly known as Burma since 1962, extended opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi's house arrest by one year on May 27. It has kept her confined for 12 of the past 18 years. Her current period of detention began in 2003.

Asean foreign ministers yesterday discussed the issue of Suu Kyi's detention with their Myanmar counterpart Nyan Win, and repeated a call for her, as well as other political detainees, to be released, Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo said.

Nyan Win told the ministers that Suu Kyi's maximum six- year period of detention will be over in six months, Yeo said yesterday.

``I think that is not an inaccurate inference'' to say that she may be released in half a year, Yeo said.

Asean won't wait for all 10 member nations to ratify the charter before starting on the implementation of some programs, Singapore's Lee said today. At least three countries have yet to agree to ratify the Asean charter.

``The internal processes of member countries are different and some will be more difficult than others,'' Lee said. ``The pace of Asean integration should not be set by its slowest members, or else all will be held back by the problems of a few.''

Legally Binding

The charter is the group's first legally binding document since its formation in 1967. It will retain Asean's long- standing non-interference policy, and members found to be in violation of its rules will be referred to the leaders of the 10 Asean countries for action. The group will still rule by consensus, having rejected proposals to add voting, expulsion or sanctions on its members.

Officials will also talk about ways to tackle the impact of rising food and energy costs on the region's economies, according to a July 8 draft of a communiqué obtained by Bloomberg News that will be released today.

The ministers will discuss rising oil and food prices, ``which pose a serious challenge to our people's welfare as well as our countries' continued economic development,'' the statement said. They will stress ``the importance of international efforts to ensure efficient functioning of market forces, as well as to come up with longer term agricultural solutions.''

Diverse Protesters

Crude oil reached a record $147.27 on July 11, and rice, wheat and palm oil have surged to unprecedented levels this year. That's fueled inflation across Asia and spurred protests against price increases by groups as diverse as Japanese fishermen, Indian truck drivers and Indonesian students. The Asian Development Bank expects inflation in the region to reach a decade high this year.

``While the risk of rapid deterioration in the near term has somewhat abated, we stressed the importance of ensuring sound fiscal and monetary policies,'' the ministers will probably say today, according to the statement.

Southeast Asian nations are seeking ways to improve their competitiveness against neighbors China and India, the world's two fastest-growing major economies. The bloc last year agreed to implement changes to its individual markets to allow the region to be a European Union-modeled economic community, without a common currency, by 2015.

ASEAN includes Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, the Philippines, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam. Formed in 1967, it has a combined gross domestic product of over $1.03 trillion and a population of about 570 million.

Read more!

Thai-Cambodia conflict may haunt ASEAN meeting

The Jakarta Post, Singapore

For several years, it has been the Myanmar issue that has overshadowed ASEAN meetings, including the leaders' summit here last November. But this time, it will be different.

The Myanmar ruling junta will probably even receive a warmer reception because of its readiness to bow to pressure by ASEAN to open its door to international humanitarian workers to help the victims of Cyclone Nargis.

When the ASEAN foreign ministers started their five-day annual meeting on Sunday evening, the rising tension between Thailand and Cambodia may have distracted the ministers' attention from their main agenda items, such as the process for setting up the ASEAN Human Rights Body and talks with VIP guests, including U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who has skipped the past few annual meetings.

"This issue (the Thai-Cambodia dispute) has been a major attention-grabber over the past two days. The ministers will want an update on what has been going on.

"The indications are that this is an issue they (the two countries) want to solve bilaterally," said the ASEAN meeting spokesman Andrew Tan.

But the ministers of the 10-member regional group are not likely to get a first-hand briefing from the conflicting parties, because Thailand does not currently have a foreign minister and instead sent its deputy prime minister Sahas Bunditkul.

And according to the official schedule as at Sunday evening, Cambodia has no plans to send its foreign minister, Hor Namhong.

The Foreign Ministry's director general for ASEAN affairs, Dian Triansyah Djani, indicated the foreign ministers would discuss the Thai-Cambodia border dispute. But he also pointed out the problem was not likely to affect the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting.

ASEAN Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan, who is also a former Thai foreign minister, called on both countries to exercise "restraint".

"The ministers may wish to address the issue ... trying to encourage early resolution and maximum restraint in order to avoid any repercussions on the image of the organization," Surin said Saturday.

But the ASEAN foreign ministers will also hear good news that will help to boost its international stature: North Korean Foreign Minister Pak Ui Chun is scheduled to sign the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC). Pyongyang will add to the list of signatory countries, which includes China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia, Russia, Pakistan and France. It is also expected the Six-Party Talks will take place here.

On Monday, after concluding their annual meeting, the ASEAN chief diplomats will meet with the High Level Legal Expert Group on the ASEAN Charter. The following day, they will receive the foreign ministers of China, South Korea and Japan. Japan's Masahiko Koumura and South Korea's Yu Myung Hwan are also scheduled to hold bilateral talks to discuss their dispute over a group of islets in the Sea of Japan.

On Wednesday, ASEAN will host bilateral meetings with its dialogue partners, including the European Union and Australia. On Thursday, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will be the star of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF). Her absence from several meetings has annoyed the group's foreign ministers, but as a consolation, the White House recently appointed Scot Marciel as the U.S. ambassador to ASEAN. --Tony Hotland and Kornelius Purba

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Talks fail to end Thai-Cambodia temple row

By Nopporn Wong-Anan

ARANYAPRATHET, Thailand, July 21 (Reuters) - Talks between Thailand and Cambodia failed on Monday to end a military stand-off over an ancient temple on their border, which regional neighbours feared could turn violent.

Hundreds of troops facing each other at the temple for the past week will hold their positions, Thai and Cambodian negotiators said after eight hours of talks.

"The best option is to stay where they are, but avoid using weapons," Supreme Commander Boonsrang Niumpradit told reporters.

Cambodian Defence Minister Tea Banh said "it is impossible to find a solution at this second", but negotiations would continue at a later date.

The meeting took place in the Thai border town of Aranyaprathet, 380 km (235 miles) from the 11th century temple awarded to Cambodia by an international court in 1962. That ruling still rankles Thais.

At the heart of the dispute is a 4.6 sq km (1.8 sq mile) area around the temple, which sits on a jungle-clad escarpment that forms a natural boundary, that is claimed by both nations.

Cambodia complained to the United Nations Security Council on Friday about Thailand's violation of Cambodia's "sovereignty and territorial integrity", but did not ask the U.N. to intervene.

In a sign of easing tensions, soldiers at the site had agreed on Monday to keep weapons out of the temple itself, Cambodian commander Chea Mon said.

"We do not want any armed troops to disturb Buddhist monks who are praying there," he told Reuters.

NEIGHBOURS URGE RESTRAINT

The stand-off has revived memories of a 2003 spat over Cambodia's famed Angkor Wat temple complex, which saw a mob set fire to the Thai embassy in Phnom Penh, and worried neighbours.
The 10-country Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) urged members Thailand and Cambodia to show "utmost caution and restraint" and offered to help resolve the impasse.

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, opening the annual ASEAN meeting in the city state, said the "situation has escalated dangerously" and the group "could not stand idly by without damaging its credibility".

Analysts say domestic politics in Thailand, where the temple is known as Khao Pra Viharn, have played a big role in fuelling the border fracas.

Preah Vihear's listing as a World Heritage site this month triggered political uproar in Bangkok, where the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) accused the government of selling out Thailand's history by initially backing the listing.

The PAD, a coalition of activists and royalists, is waging a street campaign against Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej, whom they accuse of acting as a proxy for former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, ousted in a coup in 2006.

"The PAD will use any tool, any instrument to bring down the Samak government. Khao Pra Viharn is a casualty of Thailand's domestic political crisis," Thitinan Pongsudhirak, a foreign affairs lecturer at Chulalongkorn University, told Reuters. (Additional reporting by Ek Madra in Phnom Penh and Melanie Lee in Singapore) (Writing by Darren Schuettler; Editing by Alan Raybould and Roger Crabb)
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Border dispute, Myanmar, top ASEAN ministers' talks

SINGAPORE (AFP) — Southeast Asian foreign ministers urged Thailand and Cambodia to show restraint in a border dispute, and urged Myanmar to free all political prisoners, as annual talks began Sunday night.

Ministers from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) began their talks over dinner while two of its members, Thailand and Cambodia, were locked in an armed standoff over a border temple, and after rogue member Myanmar extended opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi's house arrest.

Thailand and Cambodia have agreed to "exert utmost efforts" to find a peaceful solution to their standoff, Singapore's Foreign Minister George Yeo said after the dinner at a restaurant in the city-state's botanical gardens.

"Both sides affirmed that they would abide by their ASEAN and international obligations and exert their utmost efforts to find a peaceful solution to the issue," Yeo said in a statement.

More than 500 Thai troops and well over 1,000 Cambodian soldiers are stationed around a small Buddhist pagoda leading to the ruins of an 11th-century temple, where nearby land is claimed by both sides.

"We urged both sides to exercise utmost restraint and resolve this issue amicably in the spirit of ASEAN solidarity and good neighbourliness," Yeo said.

The foreign ministers also expressed "deep disappointment" over the extension of Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi's detention and called for all political prisoners in the country to be freed, Yeo said.

"They repeated the call by ASEAN leaders for the release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and other political detainees as part of Myanmar's national reconciliation process," he said.

Myanmar's ruling generals extended Aung San Suu Kyi's house arrest by one year on May 27. She has spent most of the past 18 years confined to her lakeside home in Myanmar's main city Yangon.

ASEAN has often been criticised for failing to act firmly against member Myanmar over human rights abuses and a lack of democratic progress.

Myanmar's junta should engage in "a meaningful dialogue with all political groups", Yeo said.

While the border dispute and Myanmar dominated the first night of the ministers' meeting, high on the official agenda is a new ASEAN charter which would create an EU-style economic block committed to democracy and human rights by 2015.

Efforts to get aid to about two million survivors of Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar are also expected to feature prominently when talks continue on Monday.

Myanmar earned international contempt by refusing to allow a foreign-led relief effort when the May cyclone left 138,000 dead or missing.

ASEAN won praise for eventually bridging the gap between the junta and the outside world over cyclone relief efforts by taking the lead on a joint aid mission with the military authorities and the United Nations.

The mission is expected to release its full report on the humanitarian situation in Myanmar's devastated southern delta region here on Monday.

The temple standoff began after three Thai protesters were arrested on Tuesday for crossing a fence to reach the ancient ruins, which have been a source of tension between the neighbours for decades.

Defence officials from both countries plan to meet on the border on Monday to try to defuse the crisis.

Thai government representatives here said they could not discuss whether the countries' ministers would hold bilateral talks in Singapore.

"Any tension, any misunderstanding between and among member states is always an issue of concern for ASEAN," the bloc's secretary-general Surin Pitsuwan said earlier Sunday.

He said the ministers were keen to see the matter resolved "as soon as possible."
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Thailand stands to miss its chance to shine as asean chair

By Kavi Chongkittavorn

Thailand is like a monkey entangled in a huge fishnet - the more it tries to escape, the worse the situation gets.

Thailand's current situation also comes at the worst of times, as the country is taking on multiple roles within the region beginning this weekend.

Thailand will assume the Asean chair this weekend. It should be an exciting, if not historic, occasion for every Thai. After all, Thailand helped found Asean in August 1967 and will occupy this slot until the end of next year. As the first country to implement the Asean Charter, it wants to set the highest standards.

Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines, considered the most democratic Asean members, are taking longer to ratify the charter. Ongoing debates in their capitals, especially Indonesia, among intellectuals, civil-society groups and parliaments have increased the charter's creditability regarding its people-centred concept. Despite its domestic doldrums, Bangkok expects to ratify the charter when Parliament opens next month.

Over the next 18 months, dozens of summit meetings with Asean's dialogue partners and supporters from at least 27 countries will take place. Leading dialogue partners, such as Australia, China and South Korea, have expressed high hopes that Thailand's stewardship of Asean would mean increased opportunities to work together to meet future challenges in the region and foster bilateral relations with the grouping as a whole.

But continued political uncertainty at home and renewed tensions between Thailand and Cambodia over the disputed Preah Vihear Temple are posing serious threats that could further undermine Thailand's leadership role in Asean, which has been degraded continuously since 2001. At the moment, both countries are under heavy pressure due to rising nationalist sentiment that could have an impact on the well-being and security of Asean. Phnom Penh has already asked the UN to intervene. If the border situation worsens, it could also dash Thailand's longstanding plan to strengthen ties and cooperation between Asean and civil-society groups, especially to work out terms of reference for an Asean human-rights body that would provide some teeth to investigate and punish rights violators.

One would think that at such a critical time, Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej would show some leadership and vision. He has shown neither. Worse, he continues to perform his daily "freak show" without showing one iota of understanding of the implications on the country's regional and international standings that his impromptu statements have. In his weekly TV talk-show programme yesterday he made a turnaround on the controversies over the outcome of the World Heritage Committee's decision by attacking its listing of Preah Vihear.

Instead of naming a successor to Noppadon Pattama, he assigned his buddy, Deputy Prime Minister Sahas Banditkul, to attend the Asean annual meeting in Singapore beginning today. Sahas, who knows next to nothing on Thai diplomacy and Asean affairs, will have lots of explaining to do on a plethora of issues affecting Asean, including the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis, the Thai-Cambodian confrontation, as well as exchange views on the proposed regional security architecture, the Asia Pacific Community, suggested by Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd in early June.

The outgoing chair, Singapore, and Asean Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan have done a good job of steering the grouping through the uncharted waters after Nargis. To a certain degree, Asean has regained its creditability after a decade of Burma's non-compliance by convincing the Burmese junta to loosen up its restrictive guidelines on international relief workers and lift limits imposed on air-lifts operated by UN agencies conducting rescue and relief operations into the Irrawaddy Delta. Now all UN agencies and recognised international humanitarian agencies are operating inside Burma with an expanded space. But only state-run Asean media get permits to file reports from inside.

Now the litmus test will be the common action taken by Asean members on Burma in the future. In Singapore today, Asean foreign ministers will consider the report prepared by the Post-Nargis Joint Assessment teams sponsored by Asean, the UN and Burma. The comprehensive report will help international donors plan ahead and pledge their support later this week in Rangoon at the Asean-UN International Pledging Conference. The UN has recently appealed for a total of US$303 million (Bt10 billion) to continue relief and recovery operations.

Future support would hinge very much on the Burmese junta's willingness to cooperate even further. The junta leaders have been persistent in saying that the relief phase has ended and the next step involves helping those who lost their livelihoods in the great flood. International relief organisations still want more access and increased freedom of movement in affected areas. So far, approximately 80 per cent of affected areas have seen some forms of help. Cyclone victims still need clean water, shelter, and medical care to combat dengue and malaria during the monsoon season.

Resentment among international donors is still running high over the junta's refusal to accept additional aid and allow more foreign relief workers into the country. Several thousand lives could have been saved during the first two weeks. Before they commit more assistance, other countries must ensure that a better monitoring mechanism is in place, especially in the current foreign-currency exchange regime, which has already benefited the junta's pockets greatly. Such guarantees are extremely difficult, if not impossible, to attain from the junta, which has no record of transparency and accountability.

In the aftermath of Nargis, Asean and Burma have found each other's value in their relationship. Asean has to take advantage of this unique position to make sure it produces a positive political outcome, otherwise all efforts will have been in vain. Beyond this, the international community may also be finding out just what Asean as a regional organisation can do and what it can offer to a new regional order.

Coming as it does now amid a confluence of negative factors and the term of the embattled Samak government, it is doubtful whether Asean - unceremoniously baptised by Nargis - will come of age under Thailand's chairmanship.
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Mindless leadership now downright dangerous

After Chetta's 'truce' and the Preah Vihear debacle, it's time to take a hard look at the people we elect

From the stand-off between Thai and Cambodian soldiers along the Northeast border to the deep South, where an end to the 100-year-old insurgency was announced, Thailand over this past week found itself caught between hope and despair. But in the end, the latter was too good to be true. How did Thailand find itself in this predicament? The answer, it seems, lies with all of us, particularly our short-sighted, ill-considered, brain-dead leaders who lack the political courage to go against public sentiment that could, if worse came to worst, put Thailand on the war path.

First, there was retired Army commander Chetta Thanajaro claiming credit for supposedly brokering an end to the ongoing insurgency in the deep South. The former defence minister, who now leads the small Ruam Jai Thai Chart Pattana Party, thought he could score some quick political points by making the bold announcement.

But once it became clear that the self-proclaimed separatist leaders were not the real thing, Chetta had nowhere to go but down.

Surely he couldn't have been that na๏ve? After all, the man is a highly decorated Army veteran and a former defence minister. Did he really think he could get away with having three unnamed men sporting fake beards announce a historic breakthrough in the deep South? Did he think that would be enough to convince the public?

He must know that the credibility of his claim will be readily apparent in time. The ceasefire was supposed to have gone into effect on July 14. The statement was aired on July 17. In the three intervening days, and shortly thereafter, police headquarters in Yala and Pattani were bombed, while a patrol unit was ambushed just two hours after the supposed "truce" was announced.

If this is the measure of our elected leaders, perhaps it is time for us to ask ourselves whether we are doing enough as citizens to scrutinise the kind of people we put into office.

Meanwhile, along the Thai-Cambodian border in the Northeast, leaders of the two countries have found themselves on a fast-moving train of nationalism and they can't get off.

First, the Cambodians succeeded in getting Preah Vihear declared a Unesco World Heritage site, with Cambodia as the only country attached to the bid, never mind that part of the temple is on disputed territory. After all, this is an election year in Cambodia and every move like this helps - even if it means that only part of the temple could be put on the prestigious list.

The dispute took a turn for the worse when a group of Thais decided they wouldn't accept the decision and would rather continue to cry over spilled milk. They blocked roads, charged the hills and spilled blood as they clashed with fellow Thais on the emotionally charged matter.

And when some of them crossed into the disputed overlapping border area and forced Cambodian authorities to react, the government responded by dispatching 400 troops to the area. Cambodia reciprocated and dispatched 1,000 troops.

Phnom Penh was confident that it had acted properly and thus flew foreign officials into the border area to witness firsthand the deteriorating relations between the two countries.

Does anybody know the rules of engagement, or even what the military mission of the troops of the two countries is?

Pictures of the troops from both sides sitting on the grass and having a picnic lunch were certainly for domestic consumption. This is not to say that this is unprecedented. Troops and security officials of both countries have often mingled in the past. Doing so became status quo back in 2000 when both countries agreed that it should be. There have been some minor disagreements and protests, such as those taking place on the road leading to the site from inland Cambodia, but back then diplomatic notes of protest were not delivered by hundreds of armed paramilitary rangers. Tensions didn't stop soldiers on either side from getting together and sipping whisky at night.

Today, the atmosphere has changed completely. Protest letters from Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen calling on Thailand to withdraw its troops drew an equally strong-worded response from Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej.

The two men, it seems, have put themselves in a tight corner and don't know how to get out of it.
It would not have been so bad if it was just the two of them. We could call it the "Battle of the Brain-dead". But unfortunately, any errors in judgement from them could have grave consequences on the citizens of both countries.

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