By SOPHENG CHEANG
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Tension at a second border temple that is claimed by both Thailand and Cambodia has eased after troops from the two countries pulled back from the site, Cambodian officials said Wednesday.
Agreement for a troop withdrawal from the grounds of the 13th century Ta Moan Thom temple was reached during a meeting between officials from the two countries late Tuesday, said Maj. Ho Bunthy, a Cambodian army commander in the area.
The sanctuary is located several hundred miles west of Preah Vihear temple, where Cambodian and Thai soldiers have been locked in a standoff for three weeks in a dispute over nearby territory.
Thailand sent troops to the border area after UNESCO approved Cambodia's application to have the temple complex named a World Heritage Site. Some Thai officials say the temple's new status will jeopardize their country's claims to land adjacent to the site.
About 800 troops from Cambodia and 400 from Thailand remain in the Preah Vihear area despite a tentative agreement reached by foreign ministers last week to redeploy them in an effort to ease tensions.
Officials met to mediate the latest dispute in the Cambodian border town of O'Smach in Oddar Meanchey province, about 290 miles northwest of the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh, Ho Bunthy said.
"Now the situation has eased at the temple. There is no more armed confrontation" between the two sides' soldiers, said Cambodian Maj. Sim Sokha, a deputy commander of an army border unit in the area.
He said the 70 Thai and 50 Cambodian soldiers, who faced off at the temple, are now back in their respective camps about 330 yards from the temple.
He said the temple is now open to tourists from both countries.
Meanwhile, moves to ease tension near Preah Vihear temple were picking up new momentum.
In Thailand, Lt. Gen. Nipat Thonglek, the chief of military border affairs, said Wednesday his government will set up a committee to consider redeploying its troops from the border area near the temple.
He said the decision was made at a Thai Cabinet meeting Tuesday. He stressed that redeployment of troops must be conducted in a manner appropriate with the military's "duty to protect the sovereignty" of Thailand.
Cambodian Information Minister Khieu Kanharith called the Thai Cabinet decision "good news."
"We welcome it, and the sooner the redeployment takes place the better," he said.
The dispute surrounding Ta Moan Thom started when Cambodian officials said some 70 Thai soldiers started occupying the temple site last week and prevented Cambodian troops from entering. Thai military officials countered that their troops had been in the area for years.
Thai army commander Gen. Anupong Paojindasaid said Tuesday the temple is within "Thai territory."
Cambodian Defense Minister Tea Banh, however, said the temple "is clearly under our sovereignty, and we have to demand it back."
Ta Moan Thom temple was built in the 13th century as a rest house along a road linking the ancient city of Angkor with what is currently northeastern Thailand, said Chuch Phoeun of the Cambodian Ministry of Culture.
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Tension at a second border temple that is claimed by both Thailand and Cambodia has eased after troops from the two countries pulled back from the site, Cambodian officials said Wednesday.
Agreement for a troop withdrawal from the grounds of the 13th century Ta Moan Thom temple was reached during a meeting between officials from the two countries late Tuesday, said Maj. Ho Bunthy, a Cambodian army commander in the area.
The sanctuary is located several hundred miles west of Preah Vihear temple, where Cambodian and Thai soldiers have been locked in a standoff for three weeks in a dispute over nearby territory.
Thailand sent troops to the border area after UNESCO approved Cambodia's application to have the temple complex named a World Heritage Site. Some Thai officials say the temple's new status will jeopardize their country's claims to land adjacent to the site.
About 800 troops from Cambodia and 400 from Thailand remain in the Preah Vihear area despite a tentative agreement reached by foreign ministers last week to redeploy them in an effort to ease tensions.
Officials met to mediate the latest dispute in the Cambodian border town of O'Smach in Oddar Meanchey province, about 290 miles northwest of the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh, Ho Bunthy said.
"Now the situation has eased at the temple. There is no more armed confrontation" between the two sides' soldiers, said Cambodian Maj. Sim Sokha, a deputy commander of an army border unit in the area.
He said the 70 Thai and 50 Cambodian soldiers, who faced off at the temple, are now back in their respective camps about 330 yards from the temple.
He said the temple is now open to tourists from both countries.
Meanwhile, moves to ease tension near Preah Vihear temple were picking up new momentum.
In Thailand, Lt. Gen. Nipat Thonglek, the chief of military border affairs, said Wednesday his government will set up a committee to consider redeploying its troops from the border area near the temple.
He said the decision was made at a Thai Cabinet meeting Tuesday. He stressed that redeployment of troops must be conducted in a manner appropriate with the military's "duty to protect the sovereignty" of Thailand.
Cambodian Information Minister Khieu Kanharith called the Thai Cabinet decision "good news."
"We welcome it, and the sooner the redeployment takes place the better," he said.
The dispute surrounding Ta Moan Thom started when Cambodian officials said some 70 Thai soldiers started occupying the temple site last week and prevented Cambodian troops from entering. Thai military officials countered that their troops had been in the area for years.
Thai army commander Gen. Anupong Paojindasaid said Tuesday the temple is within "Thai territory."
Cambodian Defense Minister Tea Banh, however, said the temple "is clearly under our sovereignty, and we have to demand it back."
Ta Moan Thom temple was built in the 13th century as a rest house along a road linking the ancient city of Angkor with what is currently northeastern Thailand, said Chuch Phoeun of the Cambodian Ministry of Culture.
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