He said that Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul would not sign a peace agreement unless the Thai-Cambodian General Border Committee (GBC) and Joint Boundary Commission (JBC) talks yield tangible and concrete progress, reports the Bangkok Post.
“If the talks fail, there will be no more meetings to waste taxpayers’ money. Whatever happens, will happen. Thailand will not rely solely on peaceful means,” Gen Natthaphon said yesterday (Oct 21), stressing that the government would act in line with international norms but would defend national sovereignty if necessary.
He described expectations for the upcoming GBC meeting as “fifty-fifty”, noting that Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow had already held preliminary discussions to establish a negotiation framework. The GBC will now work on the details.
Previous efforts under the Thai-Cambodian Regional Border Committee (RBC) yielded little progress, prompting a return to GBC-level talks, he said.
Gen Natthaphon reiterated that Thailand’s position is not to encroach on Cambodian territory but to reclaim land belonging to Thai citizens. “If Cambodia refuses to engage, we will hold our ground. Areas beyond the claim line must remain under Thai control,” he said.
He added that failure to reach an agreement could affect the upcoming ASEAN Summit, where a peace accord had initially been expected to be signed.
“If they don’t cooperate, we will move on. Thailand’s sovereignty is not negotiable,” he warned.
Yesterday, the Cabinet reportedly approved a confidential resolution endorsing five key negotiation points to raise at the special GBC session in Kuala Lumpur tomorrow, according to a source.
These include heavy weapons withdrawal, demining operations, suppression of cyber scams along the border and joint management of disputed areas pending JBC results.
Ahead of the GBC session, a preparatory meeting of the secretariats from both sides took place from Monday to yesterday in Kuala Lumpur. Thailand was represented by Gen Natthapong Phrawkaew, deputy chief of Joint Staff of the Royal Thai Armed Forces.
Both sides agreed to refine the discussion framework to ensure tangible progress.
Meanwhile, the Thai-Cambodian JBC held a parallel special session yesterday in Chanthaburi, co-chaired by Thai ambassador Prasat Prasatwinitchai and Lam Chea, Cambodia’s minister in charge of the State Secretariat of Border Affairs.