Clash at Thai-Cambodia border was misunderstanding, Thai army says

25 Jan, 2010
Asia-Pacific News

Bangkok - A short firefight between Thai and Cambodian troops near a disputed border area temple was a misunderstanding and the situation has been resolved, a Thai military official said Monday.

Neither side reported casualties after they exchanged gunfire early Sunday about 20 kilometers from the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple.

'It was a misunderstanding. I cannot say who first opened fire but the misunderstanding has been settled,' Thai Army spokesman Colonel Samsern Keawkamnerd told the German Press Agency dpa.

Samsern said the firefight was in an area claimed by both countries, and where Cambodian smugglers sometimes fell trees. He did not say if there were smugglers in the area at the time of the clash.

Cambodian officials said Thai soldiers crossed about 200 metres into Cambodia where they encountered Cambodian soldiers.

When the Thai soldiers saw the Cambodian troops the Thais shot at them, and the Cambodians returned fire and the Thais withdrew, Cambodian General Chhum Socheat told dpa Sunday.

He added the clash occurred on the morning that Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong was visiting Preah Vihear temple. He only learned of the clash Sunday evening after returning to Phnom Penh.

The relationship between the two nations has been tense for more than a year with sporadic clashes between troops near the disputed area surrounding the temple. Much of the border between the two countries has yet to be demarcated.

Diplomatic relations worsened markedly in October when Cambodia appointed Thailand's fugitive ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra as a government adviser.