Thai Army Informs Cambodia of Demining at Contested Border

SA KAEO, Oct 9 (TNA) - Thailand's First Army Region has sent an "urgent" notification to Cambodia, informing Phnom Penh of its plan to conduct a demining operation at two border locations in Sa Kaeo province on October 10.

The message, from the Burapha Force and dated October 8, was sent to the commander of Cambodia's Infantry Brigade 51. It specified the demining sites as Ban Nong Chan and Ban Nong Ya Kaew in the Khok Sung district.

The operation is cited as a fulfillment of an agreement reached during the extraordinary Thai-Cambodian General Border Committee (GBC) meeting on September 10, where both sides agreed to move forward with humanitarian demining. The Thai military said the action aims to ensure safety and adhere to the GBC consensus.

The First Army Region Operation Center clarified that the demining is taking place in areas the military asserts are under Thai sovereignty, intended to create a safe environment and support officials in maintaining peace and sovereignty. Notification to the Cambodian side was made specifically "to prevent misunderstanding or distortion of information."

The announcement comes as a deadline, set by the Sa Kaeo Governor for Cambodian nationals to vacate the area in the Thai territory, is set to expire on Friday. -819 (TNA)