BANGKOK: Thousands in Surin lined roads outside Fort Wirawat Yothin Hospital to honour two soldiers killed at Hill 350 near Prasat Ta Kwai, as caretaker PM Anutin Charnvirakul repeated that Cambodia must end threats and incursions before any peace talks.
Thousands of residents in Surin gathered on Sunday (Dec 21) to honour two Thai soldiers killed at Hill 350 near Prasat Ta Kwai, as caretaker Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul restated Thailand’s conditions for any peace talks with Cambodia.
Thousands of Surin residents lined the road outside Fort Wirawat Yothin Hospital on Sunday morning to pay their respects and bid farewell to two soldiers killed in fighting at Hill 350 in Surin province.
People formed long lines along the exit road from the hospital, waving small Thai flags as military vehicles carrying the bodies of Sergeant Major First Class Samroeng Klunprakone and Private Panupat Saosa left the hospital at 10am.
Samroeng’s body was taken to Prakhon Chai district, Buri Ram, while Panupat’s was taken to Phu Sing district, Si Sa Ket.
The two soldiers were killed at about 10.10am on Dec 16 while providing covering fire for fellow troops retreating during the first, unsuccessful assault on Hill 350, near Prasat Ta Kwai in Phanom Dongrak district.
Thai troops retrieved their bodies from the battlefield at 12 noon on Saturday. The bodies were sent for an autopsy at Surin Provincial Hospital before being transferred to the military hospital on Saturday evening for Sunday’s “sending heroes home” ceremony, which was chaired by Anutin.
Relatives and local residents attended the ceremony. A local resident, in tears, said he had come to honour the two soldiers for sacrificing their lives in an effort to reclaim Thai territory at Hill 350.
After the ceremony, Anutin said Cambodia must end what he described as aggression before Thailand would join peace talks.
He was responding to a Facebook post by Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Sunday morning, in which Anwar urged Thai and Cambodian foreign ministers to seek a peaceful resolution at the Asean Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Kuala Lumpur on Monday.
“We were not the party that violated the previous ceasefire or joint declaration. We have never been an aggressor against our neighbours or any ASEAN member,” Anutin said.
“If there is to be an end to the clashes, or a ceasefire, they must stop threatening us and stop invading our country — whether through troops, weapons, or, most recently, drones. We do not want to do anything beyond that. We do not want any losses, whether on our side or the other side.”
Asked whether ceasefire talks could be used as a delaying tactic to give Cambodia an advantage, he said measures had been taken to ensure that would not happen again.
“But right now, we are no longer negotiating. We have moved in to retake every area that is part of our sovereignty, because we have been threatened.”
Anutin also denied that China had stepped in to mediate the conflict.
Anutin said Thai forces had retaken almost all areas entered by Cambodian troops and were now securing them against any renewed incursions.
He said he hoped Samroeng and Panupat would be the last Thai soldiers killed in the fighting.
“Now, we are guarding the areas we have seized back and we have pushed out the enemy. I hope no more clashes will happen,” he said.
He added that the caretaker government would ensure the families of the two fallen soldiers received compensation in line with relevant laws and regulations. He also said the government would compensate evacuated villagers for lost income once the clashes ended, adding that evacuees would remain in shelters until the fighting was over. - The Nation/ANN
