DATE=6/14/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=CAMBODIA / THAILAND BORDER(L-ONLY)
NUMBER=2-263472
BYLINE=KAY JOHNSON
DATELINE=PHNOM PENH
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Officials from Cambodia and Thailand have
signed an agreement (Wednesday) to mark their
disputed common border for the first time in
decades. As Kay Johnson reports from Phnom Penh,
the signing ceremony came during a visit by Thai
Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai.
TEXT: // MUSIC, ESTABLISH AND FADE DOWN //
Thailand's prime minister, Chuan Leekpai,
received a red-carpet welcome in Cambodia
Wednesday on a trip that many have described as a
fence-mending tour.
/// OPT /// The only hitch came when a small
group of protesters attempted to confront Prime
Minister Chuan's motorcade on Wednesday. They
were blocked by police. /// END OPT ///
The Southeast Asian neighbors for years had cool
relations over Cambodia's Khmer Rouge rebels' use
of the border to do business in Thailand. But now
that the war with the rebels is over, the two
countries are edging toward closer ties.
One major step forward came Wednesday when the
foreign ministers of both countries signed a
memorandum of understanding to mark their common
border for the first time in nearly one-hundred
years.
The border has been under dispute for decades,
and there have been local reports that the Thai
military has seized Cambodian land. Bangkok
denies its troops are encroaching on Cambodian
territory, blaming unclear maps on where the
frontier actually is.
No date has set for the border demarcation to
begin, and there will likely be renewed disputes
when it does. But officials from both sides
agreed Wednesday the process will be a step in
the right direction toward more neighborly
relations. (Signed)
NEB/HK/KJ/JO
14-Jun-2000 08:29 AM EDT (14-Jun-2000 1229 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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