26/12/2009
Anucha Charoenpo and Pradit Ruangdit
Bangkok Post
Thailand has no plan to unseat the Cambodian government or go to war with its neighbour, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva says.
The government yesterday rejected allegations it was plotting a coup against the Cambodian government and planned to stage war against Phnom Penh.
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Thursday claimed to have seen a leaked Thai government document which he said suggested the government planned to mount a coup against his country.
He claimed to have seen other documents which showed the government had considered the possibility of war.
But Mr Abhisit said his government had no policy to interfere in Cambodia's internal affairs, nor did it intend to use violent measures against its neighbour.
Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban called the accusation "groundless" and pointed to former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his supporters as a possible source of rumour.
Hun Sen might have received false information from Thaksin, the opposition Puea Thai Party or the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship, he said.
"One day, Hun Sen will understand that the Thai government has no hostile attitudes towards Cambodia," he said.
Hun Sen said the document showed that while the Foreign Ministry did not agree with a coup in Cambodia, "others are working on it".
The Cambodian leader was apparently referring to a ministry paper forwarded to Mr Abhisit by Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya.
The first part of the document was unveiled by Puea Thai last week and the second part was disclosed last Wednesday.
Relations between Thailand and Cambodia worsened in October after Hun Sen appointed Thaksin as an economic adviser to his government.
The two countries downgraded diplomatic ties, with Thailand recalling its ambassador to Cambodia Prasas Prasasvinitchai, and Phnom Penh recalling its ambassador You Aye from Bangkok. The conflict is worrying other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono told Mr Suthep he was concerned about the poor state of relations between Thailand and Cambodia during his visit to Jakarta on Wednesday and Thursday. He called on the two countries to quickly resolve the spat.
He also offered to help the government solve the southern violence in Thailand.
He referred to Jakarta's experience in tackling conflicts in Aceh, which it approached by entering negotiations with the Free Aceh Movement.
Indonesia had pledged to speak up at the Organisation of Islamic Conference for the government's handling of the southern violence, Mr Suthep said, by arguing that the southern strife was an internal affair which did not involve religious clashes.
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