Prime Minister Hun Manet has noted his surprise at hearing the commander of Thailand’s First Army Region announced the use of force to seize sovereign territory, employing artillery fire and combined mobile units to enter Preah Chan and Chouk Chey villages in Banteay Meanchey province, as well as several other locations.
The surprise was not due to the Thai invasion itself, but because the Thai side has always declared and told the international community that it is a peace-loving country, according to a social media post by the prime minister on the evening of December 8.
“If Thailand truly loves peace and its land as much as Cambodia, then the Royal Thai Government and Army should adopt a peaceful resolution to border issues, using the agreed-upon and currently implemented mechanisms.
“If Thailand truly respects international law, it should not use military force to attack civilian villages under the pretext of reclaiming its sovereign territory. Cambodia has consistently adhered to the principle of respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of its neighbours, but it will also not allow any country to violate its sovereignty and territorial integrity. I have heard Thai leaders make the same declaration,” he said.
He added that it is precisely because of the protection of their respective territorial integrity that the two countries established the Cambodia-Thailand Joint Boundary Commission (JBC), which has been operating for over 20 years, based on legal documents inherited from the French protectorate, particularly the “Procès Verbaux” of the border demarcation commissions between Indochina-Siam in 1908-1909 and 1919-1920.
This mechanism has led to many agreements in the recent provisional border demarcation, in line with the spirit agreed upon by the Cambodia-Thailand Joint Border Commission, with some parts almost completely finished, according to Manet.
“When the Thai First Army Region announced that it would use military force to resolve the Cambodia-Thailand border issue in the area within the borders of Banteay Meanchey province (Cambodia) and Sa Kaeo province (Thailand), including along the section between border markers 42-47, it contradicted the spirit of resolving border issues peacefully, through surveying and demarcating the border in accordance with international law,” he explained.
Manet said he hoped the Thai side, which has always declared itself a peace-loving country that respects international law, will continue to use peaceful means, in accordance with legal principles, to survey and demarcate the border to define the sovereignty of each country.
“This is the easiest, most transparent and just method, because Cambodia has no intention of violating the legitimate sovereignty of its neighbours. Whatever the survey results, Cambodia will respect them. I hope that Thailand will be honest in accepting the same results,” he added.
