Thailand to revive revoked MoU with Cambodia

BANGKOK, Dec 30 (MCOT) - The Thai government is considering reviving the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the kingdom's maritime border signed with Cambodia in 2001 but which was revoked by the previous government, according to Thai Foreign Minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul.

Speaking to the media at Suvarnabhumi Airport upon returning from his official two-day visit to Cambodia, Mr Surapong said the government is considering revoking the cabinet resolution which terminated the MoU on overlapping maritime boundaries in the Gulf of Thailand signed with Cambodia in 2001.

When the MoU is revived, the government could go ahead on negotiations under the framework of MoU, he said.

The MoU was signed by then foreign minister Surakiart Sathirathai and Cambodia's deputy prime minister Sok An on June 14, 2001, under the Thaksin Shinawatra-led administration.

The agreement enables Thailand and Cambodia, which share 26,000 square kilometres of the overlapping maritime area, to jointly develop oil and gas projects.

The Abhisit Vejjajiva administration on Nov 10, 2009 approved the foreign ministry's proposal to revoke the 2001 MoU on overlapping maritime boundaries.

The decision followed Cambodia's appointment of Thailand's fugitive ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra as an economic adviser to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and Thailand feared the appointment could affect negotiations on joint development of overlapping maritime claims of some 26,000 square kilometres believed to be rich in oil and gas.

Mr Surapong said that during the two-day visit to Cambodia, he also met with Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Hor Namhong and agreed to open an Aranyaprathet-Stung Bath border checkpoint near the Poi Pet checkpoint in Banteay Meanchey province as soon as possible to boost trade and tourism between the two nations.

He said Thailand and Cambodia also agreed to hold the next Joint Commission on the Bilateral Cooperation between Thailand and Cambodia (JC) Feb 29- March 1, 2012 in Chiang Mai.

Meanwhile, the Thai-Cambodian Joint Boundary Commission (JBC) will meet in Feb 2012. The date and venue will be announced later.

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Thailand, Cambodia aim for offshore oil development

PHNOM PENH Dec 29 (Reuters) - Offshore oil and gas reserves in disputed waters of the Gulf of Thailand could take up to a decade to tap, despite progress between Thailand and Cambodia towards restarting talks on joint development, Thailand's energy minister said on Thursday.

The two countries are keen to reach an agreement on joint exploration and development of the Overlapping Claim Area (OCA) in the Gulf, which has been delayed by political upheaval in Thailand and sometimes deadly border disputes.

Thai Energy Minister Pichai Naripthaphan said Thailand would seek parliamentary approval to restore a decade-old Memorandum of Understanding between the two countries that was scrapped by the previous government when relations deteriorated.

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Phnom Penh proposed swap deal for Veera and Ratree

Cambodia on Thursday refused to free the two Thai activists jailed on spy charges but offered a deal to swap them with Cambodian prisoners jailed in Thailand.

Thai Foreign Minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul said Phnom Penh insisted that Veera Somkwamkid and Ratree Wiwattanapaibul have to serve a portion of their jail terms as stipulated in the law before being eligible to request for royal pardon.

Surapong was in Phnom Penh Wednesday to hold talks with his Cambodian counterpart, Hor Nam Hong. Top on the agenda was the fate of Veera and Ratree who were arrested along with other Thais on December 28 last year while inspecting a border area.

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Thai-Cambodian talks to neutralise exploration conflict

Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok An called for a renewed discussion with Thailand over power generating and conflicts over overlapping petroleum exploration area, said Energy Minister Pichai Naripthaphan.

After his meeting with the Cambodian minister today, Pichai said that Sok An wanted all conflicts cleared within a year and a half, for the mutual benefits of both countries.

Pichai noted that the matter is now upto the Foreign Affairs Ministry's negotiation team. He insisted that no particular person would gain benefits if the negotiation allows a joint development similar to what Thailand agreed with Malaysia or Vietnam. To lead the Thai investment is PTT Plc, which is majority owned by the government, he said.

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Border talks finally under way

The 8th meeting of the Thai-Cambodian General Border Committee finally began today in Phnom Penh after a series of clashes this year.

The deadly conflicts were sparked by a long-standing dispute over 4.6 sq-km of land around the centuries-old Preah Vihear Temple.

Cambodia in particular has been looking forward to the GBC as everything seems to be in its favour at the moment.

Thailand was forced to bow to the International Court of Justice's (ICJ) provisional order to withdraw troops from a 17.3 sq-km demilitarised zone, of which 8.5 sq-km is in Thailand and 8.8 sq-km is in Cambodia, and allow Indonesian observers into the area.

However, the armed forces' Supreme Commander Thanasak Patimaprakorn has previously rejected the ICJ's ruling, likening it to "practically losing territory". But since the Pheu Thai-led government has "very good relations" with Cambodian leader Hun Sen, the armed forces have no choice but to follow orders.

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Koh Kong commander denies apologizing for helicopter shooting

PHNOM PENH,Dec 20 (CEN)-Koh Kong Provincial Military Commander
Yun Min issued a statement Tuesday denying he had apologized for
Cambodian troops firing on a Thai helicopter that strayed into
Cambodian territory last week.

"We didn’t talk about who was right or wrong. But we agreed to
continue cooperation to avoid such an incident from happening again," he said, referring to
a meeting between the Cambodian and Thai armies in Kao Lan on Sunday.

Thai reports said earlier that Cambodia had expressed regret over the incident in which
Cambodian troops opened fire on a Thai military helicopter which entered Cambodian
territory on Ta Min Mountain in Koh Kong province on December 15.

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One Laotian group's opinion regarding Thais

It's interesting to see this Facebook paged created by one Laotian's group to express their opinions about Thais as their neighbor:

I hate Thailand that always looks down on Laos

Siam must not steal other countries' land anymore because nowadays there is international justice not like before. You Siam robbers should be in prison.

Siam must shut their mouth for now and stop looking down on others. Siem should solve their internal conflict first before interfere with other countries or you will be hated everywhere around you and your country will be dissolved quickly in no time

Siam = olo

Honestly, I don't understand the meaning of the last phrase "Siam = olo". Anyone knows what does it mean?

The Facebook page is linked here.

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Another Cambodian shot dead in Thailand

Another Cambodian illegally logging in Thailand was shot dead on Tuesday, making him at least the fourth to be killed while felling trees in Cambodia’s western neighbour this month alone.

Chi Sophal, deputy chief of the Cambodian-Thai border communication team at O’Smach International Border Crossing in Oddar Meachey province, said 22-year-old Tun Kimsan was shot in the head at about 4pm on Tuesday.

“The deceased’s family is very poor. They do not even have land to do farming, so he took a risk to log, even though the authorities warned the villagers not to enter the forest to log,” he said.

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Thais refuse to return dead Cambodians their soldiers shoot

Thai authorities have refused to give families back the bodies of three Cambodians shot while allegedly logging illegally in Thailand, instead deciding to cremate them, the father of one of the deceased said yesterday.

Police said yesterday three men from Samrong town’s Bansay Reak commune in Oddar Meanchey province were shot one week ago in Thailand.

Chan Try, 62, the father of 32-year-old victim Try Sambo, said when he went to Thailand yesterday to retrieve his dead son, Thai soldiers said they had wanted to burn the body first.

“They showed us the picture of the corpse and I could recognise that my son was killed,” he said. “Thai soldiers said they wanted to burn them in Thailand. We want to take the body for cremation in Cambodia and to hold a funeral ceremony.”

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Boundary issue with Thailand likely to be stalled

No matter who ends up leading the Thailand-Cambodia Joint Boundary Commission (JBC), the task of demarcating the border between the two countries will never be completed if the Kingdom is unable to de-politicise the issue.

The opposition Democrat Party started campaigning against the reshuffle of the JBC once it learned that Foreign Minister Surapong Towichukchaikul had replaced the previous government's man, Asda Jayanama, with career diplomat Bandit Sotipalalit.

Asda was made JBC chief in much the same way as Bandit, when Kasit Piromya, foreign minister under the Democrat-led government, had him replace career diplomat and legal expert Vasin Teeravechyan last November. Kasit never explained why the move was made and Vasin never complained about the move being unfair.

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Dogs Eat Owner

Residents prepare to transport sacks containing dogs eating their owner

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Seven dogs starved of food and water for two weeks are suspected of eating their Indonesian owner after he returned to his hometown in Manado from a holiday, local media reported on Tuesday.

A neighborhood guard was curious when he saw luggage lined up at the front of Andre Lumboga's house, days after the 50-year old arrived back home. He approached the house, smelled something foul and called the police, according to a report.

"His skull was found in the kitchen, and his body was found in the front of his house," Eriyana, a local police chief in Batam, an island off Sumatra, told VIVAnews website.

Lumboga arrived home last Wednesday, but his body was just discovered on Monday.

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A Cambodian gets two years in jail

The Kantharalak Court on Tuesday handed down two-year jail terms each to a Thai national, a Cambodian and a Vietnamese after finding them guilty of spying along the Thai-Cambodian border.

The three men are Suchart Muhammad, a 32-year-old Thai Muslim, Cambodian citizen Ung Kimtai, 43, and Nguyen Teng Yang, 37, a Vietnamese national. They were arrested on June 7 in Si Sa Ket's Kantharalak district while they were driving a pickup truck in an area controlled by the Thai military along the border near the Preah Vihear temple.

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Transformers 3 shot in Cambodia

“Transformers 3 – Dark Side of the Moon” was shot in Cambodia in February 2011 at the Angkor Temple Complex and Bokor Hill Station, according to Mr. Nicholas Simon, producer of Indochina Productions.

“Transformers 3” is the third part of the well-known science-fiction movie about TRANFORMER robots defending the earth.

“We want to shoot in Cambodia as it is one of the most beautiful countries around. With both Angkor Wat and Cambodia’s natural wonders, we will be able to maintain the large production scale of TRANFORMERS while giving the impression that the story is traveling all around the planet earth,” said Mr. Nicholas Simon in his letter addressed to Cambodian Minister of Information H.E. Khieu Kanharith.

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Thaksin and Thailand's foreign policy

The erstwhile Democrat-led government of Abhisit Vejjajiva made "catching the fugitive" the heart of its foreign policy. Mr Abhisit's Foreign Ministry team _ including Kasit Piromya as foreign minister, vice-minister Panich Vikitsreth and the minister's secretary Chavanond Intarakomalyasut _ spent a vast amount of time and resources on this unsuccessful venture.

The costs and negative consequences from such a one-track policy are high and have now become a burden on the present government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.

The intense political conflict since the coup d'etat of Sept 19, 2006 derailed the foreign policy initiatives put in place during the administration of Thaksin Shinawatra. His vision was carried out by Surakiart Sathirathai and, subsequently, by Kanthati Suphamongkhon. As foreign ministers, both were at the forefront in putting Thailand on the international radar screen. Recognition was not limited to the regional Association of Southeast Asian Nations and neighbouring countries, but expanded into many formal and informal multilateral forums such as the Asian Cooperation Dialogue. The expanded network was designed to put Thailand as the centre of the various ongoing discussions and dialogues. In our globalised world it is essential to be in the midst of things and, of course, to be recognised and consulted.

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It's time for new Thai PM to fire army chief- Prayuth Chan-ocha

Her government is now in full operation. For now, Yingluck will need to deliver on her election promises, ranging from implementing an effective economic policy and mending the country's ties with Cambodia. There is, however, one top priority that Yingluck has not made her position clear on - removing the anti-Pheu Thai Army chief, General Prayuth Chan-ocha.

True, Yingluck desperately seeks to build a working relationship with the military. When her brother, former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, wanted to weaken the military by interfering in its internal affairs, he was toppled in a coup. But the situation has changed and Yingluck is now playing a different political game. Her overwhelming popular support in this post-coup period signifies the public discontent with the military's political intervention. Yingluck is therefore urged to invent a new culture under which elected civilians control the military.

Yingluck will certainly meet her match. General Prayuth is not just a typical royalist soldier. A self-proclaimed anti-Thaksin figure, he blatantly interferes in politics. Yingluck may find it almost impossible to work with a man who openly disapproves of her own brother, the Pheu Thai political platform and the red-shirt movement.

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