Suthep cold-shoulders Hun Sen

Published: 17/12/2009

Bangkok Post via CAAI News Media

The government pulled down the shutters on Thursday, with Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban tight lipped on Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen's comment that relations will not improve as long as the Democrats remain in office.

"I will not respond to Prime Minister Hun Sen's comment because the situation isn't good at the moment," the Democrat secretary-general said.

"The Thai government must be patient in the face of the frequent criticism emanating from Cambodia."

He said the government did intend to send Ambassador Prasas Prasasvinitchai back to Phnom Penh, but diplomatic ties between the two countries would not improve if Cambodia maintains its unyielding stance.

Mr Suthep has said earlier that there could be no resumption of full diplomatic ties as long as Thaksin economic adviser to the Cambodian government.

Puea Thai Party chairman Chavalit Yongchaiyudh expressed concern over the state of Thai-Cambodian relations and the stance of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, according to Puea Thai MP Chavalit Wichayasut said.

The opposition MP said he spoke to the party chairman on Wednesday night.

According to Mr Chavalit, the Puea Thai chairman said Mr Hun Sen launched another verbal blast at Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva because he is not happy with the government and the Democrat Party in particular for setting conditions for the resumption of full diplomatic relations.

Government spokesman Panithan Wattanayakorn said earlier this week that Cambodia should stop interfering in Thai politics and should remove Thaksin Shinawatra from the position of economic adviser.

This clearly upset the Cambodian premier, Gen Chavalit said, according to Mr Chavalit.

The mother of pardoned spy Sivarak Chutipong threatened to sue Mr Suthep if he does not stop claiming that the arrest of her son in Cambodia was staged.

Simarak na Nakhon Phanom said she and her son had told the media that they had fogiven the people who said the case was politically motivated, but Mr Suthep still said everything about the case was staged.

"This makes my family very uncomfortable, if Mr Suthep doesn't stop commenting on this I may take legal action against him," the angry mother said.

She said Kamrob Palawatwichai, the diplomat who requested Thaksin's flight information from Mr Sivarak last month, had yet to contact her family.

"However, my son and I don't think it's necessary for Mr Kamrob to talk with us now. If he has anything to say about this, he can speak through the media," Mrs Simarak said.

Mr Sivarak, a 31-year-old engineer employed by Cambodia Airport Traffic Services (CATS), was sentenced to seven years in jail and fined 10 million riels (about 82,000 baht) on Dec 8 after being arrested by Cambodian authorities on charges of passing state information about Thaksin's flights to the Thai embassy in Phnom Penh. He was granted a pardon by King Norodom Sihamoni last Friday and returned to Bangkok with his mother on Monday.