Thai Army chief visits Cambodia on bilateral military, border cooperation

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Thai Army chief visits Cambodia on bilateral military, border cooperation
By Digital Content



BANGKOK, Jan 21 -- Thai Army chief/Deputy Defence Minister Gen Udomdej Sitabutr and his delegation are visiting Cambodia today and tomorrow to boost bilateral cooperation along the border but they will not discuss any border demarcation issue.

Before his departure, Gen Udomdej told reporters that the visit was at the invitation of Cambodian Army chief Meas Sophea.

Gen Udomdej is accompanied by other high-ranking military officers, including chiefs of the 1st and the 2nd Army Regions in charge of areas adjacent to Cambodia.

The Army chief said he would discuss military relations and increased joint border patrols to suppress illegal logging, illegal immigration and illicit drugs.

Gen Udomdej said that the development of border villages with neighboring countries would proceed and said he would persuade Cambodia to support the Thai government's plan to build special economic zones with neighboring countries.

Asked on comment about Cambodian soldiers' attempt to build a road near the Chong Arn Ma border pass in Ubon Ratchathani's Nam Yuen district where demarcation has yet to be done and where Thai soldiers' protested that the construction would destroy a watershed area, Gen Udomdej said that situations there which had resulted from misunderstandings of low-level officers had returned to normal.

Higher level Khmer and Thai authorities agreed to resolve the issue, Gen Udomdej said, and his delegation would not mention demarcation matters on the trip. (MCOT online news)


-- TNA 2015-01-21

[noitom]

Earlier reports stated that Hun Sen has upgraded his elimination of opposition voices, so Cambodian and Thailand would be great allies with very similar suppression of free speech platforms.

[rickirs]

"Higher level Khmer and Thai authorities agreed to resolve the issue, Gen Udomdej said, and his delegation would not mention demarcation matters on the trip."

Gen. Udomdej is supreme commander-in-chief of the Thai military succeeding Gen. Prayuth, is a member of the NCPO and of the military clique Eastern Tigers that includes Gen. Prayuth. Only Gen. Prayuth as Chief of the NCPO stands higher than him as a Thai "authority." Yet, Udomdej is unable to "mention demarcation matters?"

No, it's more a matter that the Thai military continues to hold a grudge against Cambodia over the UN Court decision that placed sovereignty of the Preah Vihear Temple area with Cambodia. As Gen. Prayuth has said of South Thailand peace negotiations, the Thai military does not give up sovereignty. Now that the Thai military isn't burdened with a civilian elected government, it can resort to military aggression, ie., "misunderstandings," to deal with Cambodia. And that is not something a commander would want to publicize.