Thailand and Cambodia to cooperate on border landmine issue, says Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs
Thailand pushes for joint action on landmine clearance with Cambodia, supporting both Interim and ASEAN Observer Teams, with IOT seen as more immediate solution.
Thailand’s Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Russ Jalichandra, revealed that following ongoing diplomatic protests and pressure from the Thai government over the placement of anti-personnel landmines along the border, Cambodia has shown a more cooperative stance. While Cambodia continues to deny laying new mines, it has agreed to conduct joint surveys with Thailand to identify priority areas for demining.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has organised two field visits with diplomatic missions to present concrete evidence of violations of the Ottawa Convention, the ceasefire agreement, and international humanitarian law. The Ministry reiterated that this is not only a security issue between the two countries but a threat to humanity that requires joint action.
Regarding the proposal for observer teams, Russ emphasised Thailand's support for both the Interim Observer Team (IOT) and the ASEAN Observer Team (AOT). However, he pointed out key differences: the IOT is composed of military attachés already stationed in Thailand and Cambodia, allowing for immediate deployment. In contrast, the AOT would require sending personnel from ASEAN capitals, which involves legal and administrative procedures under Thai law that may cause delays.
Russ stated:
"While Thailand welcomes the initiative on both the Interim Observer Team (IOT) and the proposed ASEAN Observer Team (AOT), it is important to understand the key differences between the two.
For the IOT, the observer team consists of defense attachés from ASEAN Member States already based in Thailand and Cambodia, enabling quicker deployment and operation of their observer mission.
By contrast, the AOT would require participating countries to dispatch military observers from their respective capitals. Such a process would involve additional domestic legal and administrative procedures under Thai law, which could slow down deployment. Thailand is fully supportive of the AOT in principle, but is mindful of such constraints and the need for a timely mechanism that can function without delay.
In this context, Thailand believes that the IOT structure remains the most practical arrangement in ensuring that observer functions proceed without delay, while discussions on the AOT move forward. We remain ready to facilitate and support both arrangements in a manner that ensures timeliness, efficiency, and ASEAN’s unity of purpose."
