The game Bangkok is playing: Who says what?

Tea Banh: Prawit agrees on Indo GBC

• Published: 30/03/2011 at 03:20 PM
• Online news:

Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwon has agreed to attend the General Border Committee (GBC) meeting in Indonesia on April 7-8, according to Cambodia's defence minister, Gen Tea Banh.

Gen Tea Banh announced the agreement in an interview with the Bangkok Post in Phnom Penh on Wednesday.

Gen Prawit had repeatedly said he would not go to the GBC meeting, scheduled to be held in Bogor, Indonesia, on April 7-8.  He  has said the GBC should be purely bilateral and held in either Cambodia or Thailand, not in Indonesia or any other third country.

Gen Tea Banh claimed he had talked over this matter with Gen Prawit and that he had  agreed to go to the  meeting in Indonesia.

He said he would himself leave for Indonesia on April 6.
"The Thai side can't insist  not going because it has agreed with the United Nations Security Council and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to let Indonesia mediate talks with Cambodia," Gen Tea Banh said.
"I still believe Gen Prawit will definitely go to Indonesia for the April 7-8 meeting.  I'll be waiting for him over there," he added.

An informed source said Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has made it a policy for the Cambodian army  that in talks with their Thai counterparts they must insist in not withdrawing Cambodian troops from the 4.6 square kilometre disputed area.

Hun Sen said Cambodian soldiers were duty-bound to remain in the area, regardless of for how long.
His objective is for Thailand to accept observers from Indonesia into the disputed area for inspections, the source said.

The source said Hun Sen would not be happy if he happened to see a Cambodian soldier talk to a Thai soldier in the Thai language.

"The prime minister said Cambodian soldiers must speak Cambodian, and use an interpreter if necessary," the source said.

Meanwhile please read this: Will Gen Tea Banh drink alone in Bogor?