Thai-Cambodia fighting disrupts border ties

[SpArK]

Thai-Cambodia fighting disrupts border ties
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(Reuters) - The thousands of Thai villagers sheltering in schools and huddled under tarpaulin sheets are puzzled as to why the Cambodian neighbors they see every day have become their country's enemies overnight.

Rocket-propelled grenades and fierce shelling marked the start of a new round of conflict at a normally peaceful stretch of the disputed border and sent them fleeing from their villages on Friday, killing at least 11 soldiers on both sides in two days of clashes.

They will never know who is to blame for breaching a fragile ceasefire agreed two months ago after fighting 150 km (90 miles) away. Those caught up in the worst border fighting in two decades fear ties with their neighbors, many of whom are blood relatives, may never be the same.

"They are like our brothers and sisters, we have no reason to fight. We don't know what happened, we don't know why it happened but we're all scared," said Wanchai Chaensit, 48, a rubber farmer who fled his village 3 km from the clashes.

Wanchai sits with his wife and three children at a village school 30 km away from the conflict zone, cross-legged on a sheet of cardboard under a plastic sheet tied to the side of his small tractor. This makeshift camp has become his home for the past two days and he fears the fighting will not be over soon.

"Even here, we don't feel safe. We left the village as soon as we heard the loud explosions. I hope the two governments can have dialogue and end this. We all live in peace with our neighbors and never expected this to happen."

LOUD EXPLOSIONS


But the chances of meaningful talks appear slim as both sides with huge pride at stake continue to blame the other for triggering the clashes.

Cambodia ramped up the rhetoric on Saturday, accusing Thailand of using cluster munitions and "poisonous gas" and seeking to take control two 12th Century Hindu temples claimed by both countries.


Thailand said the accusations were "groundless." It says the Ta Moan and Ta Krabey temples are in its Surin province, according to a 1947 map but Cambodia says the ancient, stone-walled temples are in its Oddar Meanchey province.

Calls by the United Nations and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, of which both countries are members, to find a lasting solution after four days of clashes in February have not been met as both countries disagree over how to settle the dispute.

At the village school in Prasat in Surin, scruffy-looking, bare-footed children played as scores of people queued for food at the makeshift camp. Some elderly people were treated for dehydration, family pets roamed and women dozed on straw mats.

Others fanned themselves with cardboard sheets in classrooms. Many of those evacuated were ethnic-Khmer, proficient in Thai and Cambodian dialects.

A cursory visit late on Saturday by the regional army commander, Lieutenant-General Thawatchai Samutsakorn, and dozens of troops helped ease the boredom in a camp with little to do but wait for a ceasefire.

But the five minutes the charismatic general spent dishing out food and smiling for the television cameras and his promise to protect Thailand's sovereignty did little to boost morale and failed to answer the key question on everyone's' minds.

"We've lived in peace for decades with Cambodians, we see them every day. Why are the soldiers fighting?" said Suthep Pringpom, 49.

"Who is causing this problem? I'm surprised it happened and I'm scared that this is the start of something bad."

Thai-Cambodia fighting disrupts border ties | Reuters

 

[SpArK]

Thailand needs to use that Gripens for the good use.

 

[LURKER]

Thailand, Cambodia on Brink of Full-Scale War - Media

Thailand and Cambodia are amassing armor and heavy artillery along their common border raising fears that a long-running territorial dispute could escalate into a full-scale war, local media reported on Monday.

A fragile cease-fire between the two Southeast Asian states was broken on Friday when the sides exchanged artillery, rocket and rifle fire. By Monday at least 12 soldiers on both sides were reported to have been killed and dozens more wounded.

"A high concentration of troops and weaponry on the border threatens to turn the conflict into a large-scale war," the Bangkok Post said.

Thai television reported on Monday tanks and armored personnel carriers with troops facing each other on opposite sides of the border in full combat readiness.

Despite UN efforts to find a diplomatic solution for the flare-up, the prospects of a new cease-fire appear to be shaky as the Thai government refuses to accept foreign mediation.

Border conflicts between the two states over the ownership of several 11th century temples that began a century ago resumed in 2010-2011. The two neighbors fought a four-day war near one of the temples in February, and a ceasefire has been in place since March.

The border between Thailand and Cambodia has never been demarcated in detail.


Thailand, Cambodia on Brink of Full-Scale War - Media

 

[blackops]

go thailand am with you

 

[blackops]

well one more thing while you guys fight see that in your fighting you dont destroy the temples lol

 

[Kevrai]

damn...im going to cambodia next month

 

[MilSpec]

my girlfriend is chinese-cambodian

 

[LURKER]

Thailand is the aggressor here .
china supporting which country ???

 

[prototype]

The article only states one side of the story,it can not be said who can be the possible aggressor as both nation's share a turbulent relation for a long time and kept on challenging each other.

AFAIK China supports Cambodia

 

[oct605032048]

we support both or support none.

 

[below_freezing]

This is the PLA's chance to test some of our weapons.

 

[Gold1010]

Thailand needs to use that Gripens for the good use.

That would risk full scale war the region doesnt need that hopefully they resolve this peacefully.

 

[Rig Vedic]

Don't doom these temples, please

The border row between Thailand and Cambodia troublingly shows no sign of ending. The two countries have once again traded gunfire, this time near two 12th century temples in an area that is claimed by both sides. It is unclear who fired the first shot, but in three days of fighting 11 soldiers — five on the Thai side, and six on the Cambodian — were killed, and more than 40 wounded. Thousands of civilians have been displaced. This is the second flare-up on the border this year. In February, there was fighting near Preah Vihear, another temple 200 km from the site of the latest confrontation. ASEAN managed to douse the tension the last time, with Indonesia, currently in the chair, playing the mediator. An informal ceasefire came into place, but a peace agreement to post unarmed Indonesian military observers along the border remained on paper because of Thailand's resistance to outside intervention in what it considers a bilateral matter. On the other hand, Cambodia clearly wants to internationalise the issue beyond ASEAN: during the February clashes, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen complained to the United Nations Security Council that Thai forces had invaded his country. In the circumstances, the door appears closed to ASEAN's mediatory initiatives. The cancellation of the Indonesian Foreign Minister's April 25 visit to Bangkok as well as Phnom Penh was the clearest indication of this.

While sizable portions of the Thai-Cambodian border are undemarcated, the main dispute is centred on their rival claims to the Preah Vihear temple. A 1962 International Court of Justice ruling that the 900-year-old Siva temple belonged to Cambodia failed to resolve the problem as it did not address the rival claims to the territory around the temple. In 2008, the temple's listing as a UNESCO World Heritage site further angered Thais, and led to the first military face-off on this issue. In both countries, the issue is handy for politicians to whip up nationalist sentiments and make allegations that sovereignty has been ceded to the other side. While rhetoric is one thing, a military confrontation can hardly provide a solution. The two countries must also keep in mind the risks to the temples. Preah Vihear is held to be one of the finest examples of Khmer architecture outside Angkor; any damage to it would be tragic and self-defeating. As responsible members of the international community, Thailand and Cambodia must both muster the political will to resolve this long-standing row peacefully, soon.

The Hindu : Opinion / Editorials : Don't doom these temples, please

 

[blackops]

any news about what is happening or things have cooled down

 

[SpArK]