Red shirt leaders whereabouts still unknown
Khmer Defense Minister Gen. Tea Banh (left)
and Thai Defense Minister Gen. Prawit Wongsuwan (right) sign cooperative
agreements on border-crossing regulations, labor cooperation, joint
border patrols, landmine eradication, maritime safety enhancements and
trade cooperation.
Ariyawat Nuamsawat
While Thai and Cambodian military officials pledged
at last month’s General Border Committee meeting in Pattaya to work more
closely on counter-terrorism, Khmer Defense Minister Gen. Tea Banh had
few answers regarding the location of one of Thailand’s most-wanted
fugitives.
At a post-meeting press conference Oct. 30 at the
Dusit Thani Hotel, Tea said that while many assume Arisman Pongruangrong,
a leader of the red-shirt antigovernment movement, is hiding in
Cambodia, he doesn’t know for certain. The defense minister also
sidestepped touchy questions over whether red shirt rebels are
undertaking weapons training in the Cambodian kingdom. Tea said only
that it was a “delicate matter” and that he could not disclose any other
information.
The quarterly border meeting otherwise covered
routine matters, with Tea and Thai Defense Minister Gen. Prawit
Wongsuwan signing cooperative agreements on six other topics, including
border-crossing regulations, labor cooperation, joint border patrols,
landmine eradication, maritime safety enhancements and trade
cooperation.
Tea also used the occasion to seek medical treatment
at Bangkok Hospital Pattaya, which picked him up after his hurried
appearance at the press conference.