KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia will soon dispatch a team to Thailand to discuss the Terms of Reference for the Interim Observation Team tasked with monitoring the ceasefire between Thailand and Cambodia.
Malaysian Chief of Defence Force General Tan Sri Mohd Nizam Jaffar said the Terms of Reference had been discussed and agreed upon with Cambodia and would also be presented to Thai authorities.
He stated that the General Border Committee meeting between Thailand and Cambodia was still ongoing to further discuss the Terms of Reference.
Nizam confirmed he would dispatch a team to Thailand to discuss the Terms of Reference with their Chief of Defence Force alongside Cambodia’s representative.
He made these comments during a joint press conference with the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines after the 22nd ASEAN Chiefs of Defence Forces Meeting.
Nizam explained that ASEAN’s involvement aimed to uphold the ceasefire and rebuild trust between the two neighbouring countries.
He noted that Interim Observation Team personnel from Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia had already been deployed to Cambodia.
Brunei and Singapore will follow soon with their personnel deployments to support the monitoring mission.
Nizam stated this team would empower them to ensure the ceasefire agreement is strictly observed.
He described the move as a historic first for ASEAN in responding collectively to a regional security crisis.
Although the conflict remained fundamentally a bilateral issue, Nizam said ASEAN was stepping in as a trusted partner to facilitate peace.
He emphasised that ASEAN centrality had been a focus since the organisation’s establishment in 1967.
Nizam declared this was the time to show the world that ASEAN can work as one unified body.
As ASEAN Chair this year, Malaysia has been leading the ceasefire mediation process with strong backing from the United States and China.
Cambodia and Thailand, once bound by close ties, are now locked in an escalating dispute along their 817-kilometre border.
The border area contains centuries-old temple ruins that have become flashpoints of tension overshadowed by the threat of conflict. – Bernama
