As many as 100 fully armed Thai soldiers have entered Cambodian territory near a disputed border temple, a spokesman for Cambodia's Council of Ministers said Wednesday.
Phay Siphan told Kyodo News the Thai troops crossed into Cambodia at 1:45 p.m. at a site known as Eagle Field where the Cambodian and Thai militaries had a tense confrontation last year.
Eagle Field is located about 2 kilometers west of Preah Vihear Temple.Initial reports said the Thai troops plan to reoccupy the area, but the Cambodian side is trying to convince the Thai troops to return to their previous position about 800 meters away.However, Thai army sources in Bangkok rejected Cambodia's accusation.In late February, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen met with his Thai counterpart on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit in Thailand, during which the two leaders reaffirmed their intent to solve the seven- month-old border dispute but set no deadline.The area near the temple was the scene of a tense standoff between Cambodian and Thai armed forces that left several dead on both sides. The situation has since eased but the military presence remains.The Cambodian government insists that Thai troops have deployed on Cambodian soil, while Thailand says its troops are only in a disputed zone.Since the border issue erupted last year, many rounds of talks at different levels including defense and foreign ministerial levels have been held but a concrete agreement or solution has proved elusive.
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