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Govt targets landmine claims
The government is expected on Monday to finalise retaliatory responses to a recent landmine explosion in the Chong Bok border area of Ubon Ratchathani, near Cambodia, which left three Thai soldiers injured.
Members of the government's ad hoc centre for the Thailand-Cambodia border, which includes officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and various national security agencies, will meet at the National Security Council office today to formalise an official response, said R Admiral Surasan Kongsiri, its spokesman, on Sunday.
The centre on Sunday held a closed-door meeting to discuss an initial course of action based on findings from the Second Army Region, which confirmed the explosion came from a newly planted landmine, he said.
The landmines issue was yesterday subject to a heated back and forth between the Cambodia Mine Action Centre and the Thai army.
Heng Ratana, director-general of the Cambodia Mine Action Centre, in an article by the Phnom Penh Post, dismissed speculation the mine had been planted by Cambodia. In the article, he referred to the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention (Ottawa Convention), which was ratified by Cambodia.
"As for possible newly laid mines in Thailand, there have been a number of social media claims that the Thai military placed them," he said, as quoted by the newspaper.
"There appears to be no proof that Thai authorities or demining NGOs have attempted to conduct a thorough investigation," he added.
In response, Maj Gen Winthai Suvaree, spokesman for the Royal Thai Army (RTA), rejected the remarks by Heng Ratana, describing the claims as false, misleading and damaging to bilateral relations.
Mr Heng Ratana also claimed to have photo and video evidence suggesting Thai troops had laid new landmines near the border, Maj Gen Winthai said.
The landmines discovered near the Chong Bok border area and other locations were identified as PMN-2 anti-personnel mines manufactured in Russia, which the Thai army has never possessed, procured nor used in any military operations, especially in border areas, he said.
The images and video clips, which were published by Cambodia's Fresh News outlet, he said, actually originated from training or clearance operations conducted by Thailand's Humanitarian Mine Action Center, not from active mine deployment.
"The presentation of such information constitutes a distortion of facts and causes serious damage to Thailand," said Maj Gen Winthai.
Mr Heng Ratana's claim the landmines were found on Thai territory, which therefore placed responsibility on Thailand under Article 5 of the 1997 Ottawa Convention -- which says a sovereign state is responsible for mine clearance within its territory -- only reinforces the fact that the mines were located within Thailand's sovereign domain, said the RTA spokesman.
This, in turn, suggests an act of cross-border intrusion, with landmines being secretly planted on Thai soil, said Maj Gen Winthai, who also pointed out inconsistencies in Cambodia's own official statements.
Lt Gen Malis Sophat, spokesman for Cambodia's Ministry of National Defense, said a Thai soldier had stepped on a landmine inside Cambodian territory, which directly contradicts Mr Heng Ratana's assertion the mines were found within Thailand and were therefore the responsibility of Thai forces, according to Maj Gen Winthai.
"The conflicting statements made by Cambodian officials reflect inconsistencies in their narrative and suggest a failed attempt to distort the facts, ultimately forcing them to backtrack on their own claims," said Maj Gen Winthai.
He said Thailand strictly adheres to international humanitarian law and called on Cambodia to immediately cease spreading disinformation.
"This could strain diplomatic relations and mislead the international community," he warned.
In another development, members of the Network of Students and People for Reform of Thailand, the Dharma Army and the People's Centre for the Protection of the Monarchy, yesterday marched from their rally site at Chamai Maruchet Bridge to the Cambodian Embassy in Bangkok, protesting against Wednesday's landmine incident.
At the embassy, protesters delivered speeches from a loudspeaker truck, waved Thai national flags and condemned Cambodia over what they believed to be the planting of new landmines.
The government, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the military, is currently considering filing a formal complaint with the United Nations over Cambodia's alleged violation of the Ottawa Convention, said Danuporn Punnakanta, spokesman for the ruling Pheu Thai Party.
This step is part of the ongoing process, with Thai authorities affirming that the landmines were newly planted by the other party, said the party spokesman.
He added, however, that the government remains committed to resolving the border conflict through peaceful means in pursuit of lasting peace.
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