Thailand sets demands ahead of four days of Cambodia peace talks

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Clashes erupted on Dec 7 with at least 44 people killed and more than half a million civilians displaced.

PHOTO: REUTERS

BANGKOK – The Thai military said ceasefire talks with Cambodia, set to begin on Dec 24, are expected to conclude with a meeting of the countries’ defence ministers on Dec 27, as the two sides seek to end weeks of deadly clashes.

The talks are set to start at 4pm Bangkok time (5pm Singapore time) in Thailand’s Chanthaburi province, which borders Cambodia.

Thailand’s Ministry of Defence outlined several demands to be discussed ahead of the bilateral meeting of the General Border Committee on Dec 27.

If secretariat-level discussions fail to reach agreement on key technical frameworks such as troop deployments, the Thai side will not proceed with the GBC meeting or sign any agreement on Dec 27, the defence ministry said.

The discussions will mark the first bilateral dialogue since clashes erupted on Dec 7, with at least 44 people killed and more than half a million civilians displaced on both sides of their 800km border.

Five days of clashes in July ended with an initial ceasefire agreement mediated by Malaysia and US President Donald Trump.

The Thai military plans to raise five issues in the talks:

• The use of anti-personnel landmines

• The use of historical sites as military positions

• The firing of heavy weapons from civilian communities

• The use of civilian buildings as military positions or weapons storage facilities

Both sides have denied targeting civilians, claiming they are only attacking military targets.

The Cambodian Mine Action and