Army announces readiness to defend territory in line with NSC resolution
Royal Thai Army announces full readiness to defend the nation following NSC order, accusing Cambodian troops of planting new landmines in Si Sa Ket.
The Royal Thai Army (RTA) on Tuesday announced that its troops and weapons are fully prepared to conduct military operations to defend the nation against possible Cambodian attacks.
RTA spokesman Maj Gen Winthai Suvaree said the army is ready in terms of both manpower and armament to safeguard national territory in accordance with the National Security Council (NSC) resolution and directives from the Defence Ministry.
Winthai made the announcement on Tuesday afternoon after the NSC held an urgent meeting earlier in the day and resolved to suspend the implementation of the joint declaration between the Thai and Cambodian prime ministers to rebuild peace.
The resolution came in response to a landmine incident in which four Thai soldiers were injured while patrolling the border in Si Sa Ket’s Kantharalak district on Monday morning.
The army maintained that the mine had been newly planted by Cambodian troops who had crossed into Thai territory.
Winthai dismissed Cambodia’s claim that the mine was an old remnant from the civil war decades ago, insisting that the army’s investigation confirmed that Cambodian troops had recently crossed the border to plant new mines.
He added that, apart from the landmine that injured the four soldiers, Thai troops had also discovered three additional mines in nearby areas.
“These actions demonstrate that Cambodia lacks sincerity in honouring the joint agreements and constitute a violation of the Ottawa Treaty on landmines,” Winthai said. “This has disrupted the process of rebuilding peace between the two countries.”
The spokesman reiterated the army chief’s stance that the RTA will uphold its right to defend the nation against unfair aggression from Cambodia.
