The border conflict between Thailand and Cambodia can be resolved only when the Thai government can talk with the Cambodian leader because, in Cambodia, the people take orders from just one man, said Lt-Gen Boonsin Padklang, commander of Thailand’s Second Army Region.
He was speaking during his informal talk with students at Thammasat University on Tuesday.
He said there are differences in the relationships between Thailand and Laos and Thailand and Cambodia. Thailand and Cambodia have shared border with disputed demarcations and Cambodian people are difficult to negotiate with, because they tend to say one thing and do another.
Cambodia, claimed Boonsin, is provocative and always resorts to military means, followed by complaints to the “Big Brother”, which is a simple trick of which the Thai people should be aware.
To talk with the Cambodian leader, he said that Thailand must send someone who has no vested interest or hidden agenda, adding that he has no intention to criticise the incumbent government.
He explained that the real reason behind the Thai army’s decision to engage in undeclared war with Cambodia in late July was because Cambodia have trespassed on and occupied Thai territory for a long time.
He also stressed the importance of Thai troops being combat ready along the border with Cambodia, because of the uncertain situation.
He disclosed that, during the fighting in late July, the Thai Army sustained 18 fatalities and about 660 soldiers were injured, with several losing their arms or legs.
He said that he is, however, optimistic that the situation between Thailand and Cambodia will improve in the near future.
Regarding the conversation between Cambodian strongman Hun Sen and then Thai prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, Lt-Gen Boonsin said that he does not know whether its leaking was coincidental or a blessing from “Phra Siam Thevathiraj”, the guardian angel of Thailand, but it has revealed some truths to the Thai people.
On the possibility of another military coup in Thailand, Lt-Gen Boonsin said that coups are obsolete and reflect an old mindset, adding that the military does not want to get involved in politics.
About his future, after his mandatory retirement at the end of this month, the commander said that he would definitely not get involved in politics.
