UPDATE WITH NEW DEVELOPMENT, CHANGE HL, DECK
By Anadolu staff
Thailand and Cambodia on Thursday agreed to move back troops from the disputed area after border clashes between the two countries, according to local media reports.
The agreement came during a meeting between the Thai Army Commander-in-Chief Gen. Pana Klaewplodthuk and his Cambodian counterpart, Gen. Mao Sophan, held at the Chong Chom Pass in Surin province, Thai PBS World reported.
The two sides agreed to move their troops 200 meters back from a spot in a disputed area near Thailand’s border in Ubon Ratchathani province.
Earlier, Thailand's Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra spoke with her Cambodian counterpart Hun Manet to swiftly de-escalate at the border.
“We have a mutual understanding to resolve the situation as quickly as possible and prevent further incidents,” Paetongtarn told reporters.
She added that her relations with Hun remain cordial.
Early Wednesday, Thai and Cambodian troops engaged in a brief gunfight in their undemarcated border area, with no casualties reported.
The incident, lasting 10 minutes, was reported in the disputed area lying across Cambodia’s Preah Vihear province and the northeastern province of Ubon Ratchathani in Thailand.
The area in Cambodia’s Choam Ksan district and Chong Bok border pass in Thailand is undemarcated, and the two Southeast Asian neighbors have overlapping claims on the territory.
*Writing by Islamuddin Sajid