SURIN - The Thai-Cambodian Regional Border Committee (RBC) has reached an agreement where both sides will strive to maintain peace along the border after the International Court of Justice's (ICJ) ruling on Monday.
The agreement was reached at an informal meeting of the RBC held in Surin province on Sunday, one day ahead of the ICJ's ruling on the disputed territory surrounding the Preah Vihear temple.
The Thai team was led by 2nd Army commander Charnchai Poothong while its Cambodian counterpart was headed by Cambodia's Fourth Region Army commander Gen Chea Mon.
Both sides were committed to maintaining border peace by working together more closely on border matters, said Lt Gen Charnchai yesterday.
The two countries' military forces also agreed to remain at their current bases near the Thai-Cambodian border no matter how the ruling turned out, he said.
Both sides also agreed to communicate with one another hourly by phone and through other channels around the clock, Lt Gen Charnchai said.
The agreement to stay in touch regularly would help prevent any attempt to generate misunderstanding or provoke violence.
Both sides also agreed to make an effort to ease tensions among people living along the border, he said.
Some reports said a number of Cambodian residents had fled into Thailand in a panic over possible border clashes following the ruling.
Gen Chea Mon, however, dismissed reports that Cambodians had fled their homes.
He said the Cambodian military had not reinforced its soldiers currently stationed near the border.
Reports of troop movements stemmed from a misunderstanding. Soldiers were actually giving flood relief supplies provided by Prime Minister Hun Sen to flood victims in Cambodia. They were not there to boost security.
Lt Gen Charnchai said the RBC meeting yesterday yielded fruitful results in terms of both bilateral peace-keeping operations and relations between Thailand and Cambodia.
Meanwhile, Buri Ram's Area 2 office for primary education has ordered about 40 border schools under its jurisdiction to suspend classes today and tomorrow, over concerns that border violence could erupt as a result of the ICJ's ruling.