Thailand sets demands ahead of four days of Cambodia peace talks
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Clashes reignited on Dec 7 with at least 44 people killed and more than half a million civilians displaced.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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BANGKOK – The Thai military said ceasefire talks with Cambodia, set to begin on Dec 24, are expected to conclude with a meeting between the countries’ defence ministers on Dec 27, as the two sides seek to end weeks of deadly clashes.
The talks were set to start at 4pm Bangkok time (5pm Singapore time) on Dec 24 in Thailand’s Chanthaburi province, which borders Cambodia. Thailand’s Ministry of Defence outlined several demands to be discussed ahead of the bilateral meeting of the General Border Committee (GBC) on Dec 27.
If secretariat-level discussions fail to reach agreement on key technical frameworks such as troop deployments, the Thai side will not proceed with the GBC meeting or sign any agreement on Dec 27, the Defence Ministry said.
The discussions will mark the first bilateral dialogue since clashes reignited on Dec 7, with at least 44 people killed and more than half a million civilians displaced on both sides of the 800km border.
Five days of clashes in July ended with an initial ceasefire agreement mediated by Malaysia and US President Donald Trump.
Fighting continued in parts of Thailand’s eastern and north-eastern provinces bordering Cambodia as both sides sought to claim territory, a Thai Defence Ministry spokesman said at a briefing on Dec 24. One soldier was killed in clashes on Dec 23, bringing the military death toll to 22, he said.
Thai civilian deaths from the latest fighting meanwhile rose to 41, and about 150,000 people have been displaced to shelters, he said.
The Thai military plans to raise five issues during the talks:
The use of anti-personnel landmines.
The use of historical sites as military positions.
The firing of heavy weapons from civilian communities.
The use of civilian buildings as military positions, or weapons storage facilities.
Both sides have denied targeting civilians, claiming they are attacking only military targets.
The Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority has separately condemned what it called Thailand’s military aggression and campaign of misinformation, the Khmer Times reported.
Cambodia had asked that the meetings be held in Kuala Lumpur instead, but Thailand rejected the request
The two sides normally take turns hosting the bilateral meetings, and the last GBC meeting was held in September, in Cambodia’s Koh Kong province. BLOOMBERG
