Thai and Cambodian troops clashed for a fourth straight day yesterday over a disputed border area surrounding a 900-year-old mountaintop temple, deepening political uncertainty in Bangkok and prompting Cambodia to urge UN intervention.
Several hours of shelling and machine gun fire subsided at about 11am, creating an uneasy peace in the 4.6km2 contested area around the 11th-century Preah Vihear Temple claimed by both Southeast Asian countries.
Both sides blame the other for sparking clashes that have killed at least two Thais and three Cambodians since Friday and unleashed nationalist passions in Bangkok, energizing “Yellow Shirt” protesters demanding Thailand’s government step down.
Reasons behind the fighting remain murky.
Some analysts reckon hawkish Thai generals and nationalist allies may be trying to topple Thailand’s government or even create a pretext to stage another coup and cancel elections expected this year.
Others say it may be a simple breakdown in communication channels at a time of strained relations over Cambodia’s flying of a national flag in the disputed area and laying of a stone tablet inscribed with: “This is Cambodia.”
In Phum Saron, an evacuated village in Thailand’s Si Sa Ket Province where Cambodian artillery struck several homes and a school on Sunday, Thai soldiers guarded buildings and said it was unclear if more fighting loomed.
The Thai government said 30 Thai soldiers and four villagers had been wounded so far. Cambodia said 10 of its troops were wounded.
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen called on the UN Security Council to convene an urgent meeting, accusing Thailand of “repeated acts of aggression” that have killed Cambodians and caused a wing of the temple to collapse.
In a speech in the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh, Hun Sen directly addressed his Thai counterpart.
“We will go to the UN Security Council whether you like it or not,” he said during a university graduation ceremony, calling on the UN to deploy peacekeeping troops to the area.
“The armed clash is threatening regional security,” he said.
Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva wrote to the UN Security Council accusing Cambodia of starting the fighting by opening fire at a Thai military post at Phat Ma Khua village on Friday and again in the same area on Sunday.
“Thai soldiers had no choice, but to exercise the inherent right of self defense,” Abhisit said.
DAREDEVIL: Honnold said it had always been a dream of his to climb Taipei 101, while a Netflix producer said the skyscraper was ‘a real icon of this country’ US climber Alex Honnold yesterday took on Taiwan’s tallest building, becoming the first person to scale Taipei 101 without a rope, harness or safety net. Hundreds of spectators gathered at the base of the 101-story skyscraper to watch Honnold, 40, embark on his daredevil feat, which was also broadcast live on Netflix. Dressed in a red T-shirt and yellow custom-made climbing shoes, Honnold swiftly moved up the southeast face of the glass and steel building. At one point, he stepped onto a platform midway up to wave down at fans and onlookers who were taking photos. People watching from inside
A Vietnamese migrant worker yesterday won NT$12 million (US$379,627) on a Lunar New Year scratch card in Kaohsiung as part of Taiwan Lottery Co’s (台灣彩券) “NT$12 Million Grand Fortune” (1200萬大吉利) game. The man was the first top-prize winner of the new game launched on Jan. 6 to mark the Lunar New Year. Three Vietnamese migrant workers visited a Taiwan Lottery shop on Xinyue Street in Kaohsiung’s Gangshan District (崗山), a store representative said. The player bought multiple tickets and, after winning nothing, held the final lottery ticket in one hand and rubbed the store’s statue of the Maitreya Buddha’s belly with the other,
Japan’s strategic alliance with the US would collapse if Tokyo were to turn away from a conflict in Taiwan, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said yesterday, but distanced herself from previous comments that suggested a possible military response in such an event. Takaichi expressed her latest views on a nationally broadcast TV program late on Monday, where an opposition party leader criticized her for igniting tensions with China with the earlier remarks. Ties between Japan and China have sunk to the worst level in years after Takaichi said in November that a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could bring about a Japanese
‘COMMITTED TO DETERRENCE’: Washington would stand by its allies, but it can only help as much as countries help themselves, Raymond Greene said The US is committed to deterrence in the first island chain, but it should not bear the burden alone, as “freedom is not free,” American Institute in Taiwan Director Raymond Greene said in a speech at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research’s “Strengthening Resilience: Defense as the Engine of Development” seminar in Taipei yesterday. In the speech, titled “Investing Together and a Secure and Prosperous Future,” Greene highlighted the contributions of US President Donald Trump’s administration to Taiwan’s defense efforts, including the establishment of supply chains for drones and autonomous systems, offers of security assistance and the expansion of
RSS