Cambodia asks UN to host conference to resolve territorial dispute with Thailand

via Khmer NZ

By The Associated Press (CP)

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — Cambodian's prime minister called on the United Nations to help resolve a territorial dispute with Thailand, saying Monday that the two countries with troops at the border have reached an impasse.

Prime Minister Hun Sen accused his Thai counterpart of threatening to use military force in the neighbours' rival claims over land near the 11th century Preah Vihear temple perched atop a mountain along the border.

The Cambodian leader's comments marked the latest episode in a long-simmering dispute, used by both sides to stir up nationalist sentiment and gain domestic political support.

"I would like to request that an international conference be set up to discuss the dispute at the Cambodia and Thailand border," Hun Sen said during a speech to civil servants. "I appeal to the United Nations, including ASEAN nations and all the signatories of the Paris peace accord to host the conference because the bilateral discussion is at an impasse now."

ASEAN groups all the nations of Southeast Asia, and the Paris peace accord of 1991 arranged for an end to Cambodia's long civil war and a transition to multiparty democracy.

A Thai government spokesman said Bangkok is writing its own letter to the U.N., but he did not directly address Hun Sen's request for a conference.

Thailand and Cambodia both claim a 1.8 square mile (4.6 square kilometre) patch of land near the cliff-top Preah Vihear temple. The Hindu monument, which dates back to the Khmer Empire, was named a World Heritage site by UNESCO in 2008 after Cambodia applied for the status.

There have been small and sometimes deadly clashes in the area between the two countries' militaries during the past few years.

The International Court of Justice awarded the temple to Cambodia in 1962.

The issue heated up again last month when Cambodia submitted a management plan for the temple at the annual meeting of UNESCO's World Heritage Commission. The U.N. cultural agency deferred its decision on the plan until next year's meeting.

Right-wing nationalists in Thailand staged a protest Saturday calling on Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's government to more aggressively pursue Thai claims to the disputed land. Abhisit placated the protesters by assuring that Thailand would defend its national interests.

Hun Sen responded Sunday by sending a letter marked "Very Urgent" to the U.N. Security Council and the U.N. General Assembly, saying that comments made by Abhisit represent "a clear threat to use military force" and a violation of U.N. rules.

The letter added that Cambodia "reserves its legitimate rights to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity in case of deliberate acts of aggression."

Thailand's government spokesman, Panitan Wattanayagorn, said Monday that Thailand's Foreign Ministry is drafting a letter to the United Nations to clarify its position and to reiterate its policy to resolve the dispute peacefully.