BANGKOK, 21 July 2011 – Army Commander-In-Chief General Prayut Chan-O-Cha has stressed that Thailand and Cambodia must talk on how both sides will operate after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued the temporary injunction ordering troop withdrawal from the disputed zone.
Speaking about the attempt of Cambodia to solve the Preah Vihear dispute via the ICJ, General Prayut stated that Thailand must fight the case in the World Court, but in the same time, dialogue sessions between the two sides must be made on how both will do following the ICJ’s order.
The army chief went on to say that at present both the Ministry of Defence and the Thai armed forces have issued no directions in this regard. He noted that the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs must confer on future operational directions for troops.
General Prayut uttered that battles will only lead to more conflicts, and he personally does not want things to turn out that way because people of the two countries will not be able to live in harmony.
The army chief also pleaded Thai people to give moral support to soldiers stationing on the Thai-Cambodian border who have been working hard with responsibility and devotion. He then asked those who usually criticise the military to give fairness to officers at the operation level.
