PHNOM PENH: Cambodian defence minister General Tea Seiha has postponed scheduled talks with his Thai counterpart Phumtham Wechayachai over border issues, a news source revealed on Thursday (March 20).
Seiha, who doubles as a deputy prime minister, cited the reason for postponement as an urgent mission with former president Hun Sen, now president of Cambodia’s Senate.
The meeting of the Thailand-Cambodia General Border Committee (GBC), originally scheduled for Friday (March 21), is now expected to take place in April, the source said.
The meeting’s agenda includes cooperation on combating transnational crimes, call centre scamming gangs, drug trafficking, illegal immigration, and border encroachment.
Phumtham will also reportedly use the meeting to seek cooperation in reducing tensions and conflicts along the Thai-Cambodian border.
In February, Thai soldiers intervened when groups of Cambodians visiting the Ta Muen Thom Temple in Surin province sang the Cambodian national anthem. The event sparked tensions between the two nations.
Some Thai media outlets claimed that Cambodian PM Hun Manet had called Phumtham to personally apologise for the incident, but Phumtham rejected this as false information. - The Nation/ANN
