Thailand Travel News

Thailand has put its forces on high alert at the disputed border with Cambodia and said that it would deploy more forces on the border. Second Army Region commander Viboonsak Neepal has said that Cambodian army had begun deploying more troops and artillery including 10 large cannons and six tanks near the Preah Vihear temple.

Trouble began in July of last year when UNESCO approved Cambodia’s bid to have the Preah Vihear temple name as a heritage site. Since then several gun battles have killed at least seven Thai and Cambodian soldiers and both sides have refused to back away from their positions.

Hun Sen, the Cambodian Prime Minister said in a speech that the government would take a hard stance on the dispute which has seen several skirmishes between the two countries.

Cambodia and Thailand have been at loggerheads over the land surrounding the Preah Vihear temple for decades but the tensions spilled over into violence when the temple was granted UN Heritage Status.

Although the International court has ruled in 1962 that the temple belonged to Cambodia, the most accessible entrance to the ancient Khmer temple with its crumbling stone staircases and elegant carvings is in northeastern Thailand.

Cambodia and Thailand share a 500-mile (800-kilometer) land border, much of which has never been clearly demarcated because the countries refer to different maps.