AKP, August 12, 2017 –The Lao side has agreed to withdraw all its armed forces from Stung Treng, a northeastern Cambodian province bordering with the Lao province of Attapeu not later than tomorrow morning.
Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo Hun Sen, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia, told a joint press conference held in Vientiane, Laos this morning following their bilateral talks on the ongoing border tension.
He added that he has ordered all Cambodian forces deployed yesterday to the conflicting areas to return to their respective bases in order to normalise the situation and increase confidence among the two peoples.
For his part, H.E. Thongloun Sisoulith said today’s discussion with Samdech Techo Hun Sen took place in an honest and friendly manner. “I’ve ordered the troop withdrawal from Cambodia before tomorrow morning,” he affirmed.
Besides, he underlined, the two countries’ Ministries of Foreign Affairs will continue to discuss the remaining border issues.
Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen left here this morning for Laos to meet with his Lao counterpart on the ongoing border tension.
In April, a group of Lao armed forces crossed the Sekong River into Cambodia’s territory by boat to stop Cambodia from building a road along the border in Stung Treng province. The Cambodian side asked its Lao counterpart at different levels to remove the troops several times, but the Lao side seemed ignoring this request.
Yesterday, Samdech Techo Hun Sen issued an ultimatum to Laos to withdraw its troops without condition from the Cambodian territory, not later than Aug. 17, 2017 after he has got no reply from his Lao counterpart to his letter dated Aug. 2, 2017 on the troop withdrawal request.
By C. Nika
