Thursday, 10 February 2011

AKP - The Agence Kampuchea Press


via CAAI

Cambodia’s Reaction to Bangkok Post Newspaper Online

Phnom Penh, February 9, 2011 AKP – The spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Cambodia has issued a statement in response to the Bangkok Post newspaper online.

The full statement dated today reads as follows:

“The Bangkok Post newspaper online today (09 February 2011) said: ‘Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said he spoke with his Cambodian counterpart Hor Namhong yesterday and they agreed to hold talks in a third country.’

In this regard, I wish to emphasize that HE Deputy Prime Minister Hor Namhong, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, did not speak with Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya. But yesterday afternoon Thai ambassador met HE Deputy Prime Minister Hor Namhong to convey a proposal of HE Kasit Piromya.

So far HE Deputy Prime Minister Hor Namhong has not responded to the proposal yet as this Issue is currently in the hand of the United Nations Security Council.” –AKP

______

UNESCO To Send Mission to Preah Vihear

Phnom Penh, February 9, 2011 AKP – The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, yesterday reiterated her call for calm and restraint around the Temple of Preah Vihear, inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2008, according to UNESCOPRESS.

A border dispute between Cambodia and Thailand caused several deaths and damage to the site in recent days.

“I intend to send a mission to the area as soon as possible to assess the state of the temple,” she said. “World Heritage sites are the heritage of all humanity and the international community has a special responsibility to safeguard them. This requires a collective effort that must be undertaken in a spirit of consultation and dialogue. Heritage should unite people and serve as an instrument of dialogue and mutual understanding and not of conflict.”

The Temple of Preah Vihear, dedicated to Shiva, is composed of a series of sanctuaries linked by a system of pavements and staircases over an 800-metre-long axis; it dates back to the first half of the 11th century AD. The site is exceptional for the quality of its carved stone ornamentation and its architecture, adapted to the natural environment and the religious function of the temple. –AKP

______

Foreign Ambassadors Informed of Thai Encroachment on Cambodian territory

Phnom Penh February 9, 2011 AKP – Deputy Prime Minister H.E. Hor Namhong on Monday invited ambassadors of the member countries of the UN Security Council and chargés d’affaires of different countries to Cambodia to inform them of the Thai invasion into Cambodian territory.

“I showed them the internationally-recognized map and the unilaterally-drawn map by Thailand,” said H.E. Hor Namhong, also Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.

Thailand has never opposed to the Dangrek Map (Annex I) used by the International Court of Justice in the Hague until the Khmer Temple of Preah Vihear was inscribed as a World Heritage Site, he explained.

H.E. Hor Namhong also informed his guests of the successive Thai encroachment on Cambodian territory, especially the recent invasion despite negotiations by both sides’ military field commanders on a ceasefire.

Last week, he added, Thai prime minister, foreign minister and military commanders said that the use of force would be the last option. “That means they are ready to send troops to the border and to use force to resolve the border issue,” H.E. Hor Namhong stressed. –AKP

By SOKMOM Nimul

No comments: