DEPUTY Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow confirmed Thailand’s readiness to join a trilateral meeting with Cambodia and the Philippines during the Asean summit on May 7-9 as being arranged by Manila with Khmers too apparently agreeing to do so, Amarin TV and PPTVHD36 said today (May 4).
Thailand is prepared to a certain extent where the content and details of the discussions are concerned with this trilateral meeting being an initial step after which the outcome will be forwarded to respective foreign ministers for further detailed discussions.
However, relaunching cooperation mechanisms such as Joint Border Committee (GBC) is the next stage with the initial focus being on building mutual trust.
Meanwhile a senior Cambodian foreign affairs official said his country would pursue mediation under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) if Thailand proceeds with a plan to cancel the 2001 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU44), signaling a shift from bilateral negotiations to international legal channels, according to Phnom Penh Post.
In an exclusive interview with Khmer state television (TVK), Cambodia’s Secretary of State of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Mr. Kong Phok expressed deep disappointment at the report that the Thai government was preparing to unilaterally cancel MOU44.
“We are extremely disappointed that the Thai side is considering withdrawing from MOU44 unilaterally,” he said, explaining that the agreement is the only bilateral cooperation framework that both sides have adhered to for more than two decades in managing disputes over overlapping areas in the Gulf of Thailand.
This MOU, signed in Phnom Penh in June 2001, also includes boundary demarcation and the joint development of offshore oil and gas resources without affecting the sovereignty of either party.
He warned that a unilateral withdrawal would undermine a long-standing mechanism rooted in “cooperation and mutual goodwill” and would create uncertainty in future dispute management, stating, “If the Thai side withdraws… Cambodia will likely have no choice but to rely on international law,” citing UNCLOS’s mandatory compromise mechanism.
CAPTION:
Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow. Above photo – PPTVHD36, Front Page photo – Amarin TV
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