Thailand's military refutes Cambodia's accusation that Thai troops planted landmines!
General Winthai Suwari, a spokesperson for the Royal Thai Army, issued a clarification statement on July 20 to refute the allegations by Rattana, Director of the National Mine Action Authority of Cambodia.
Previously, Rattana accused the Thai military of planting new landmines along the border between Thailand and Cambodia during an interview with the media, claiming to have photos and videos to support this claim.
In fact, these are PMN-2 anti-personnel mines manufactured in Russia. The Thai military does not have this type of mine, it has never been included in the procurement list of the Thai military, and has never been deployed in all border areas.
Additionally, the photos and videos of Thai soldiers planting landmines published by Cambodian media are all fabricated. They were used by Cambodia as evidence that the Thai military detonated explosives during rescue exercises or when the troops were resting. The general stated that such statements distort the facts and cause serious damage to Thailand.
Rattana stated that the landmines are within Thai territory, and Thailand is responsible for this. He cited Article 5 of the Ottawa Convention: "The owner of territorial sovereignty must be responsible," and the Thai military believes that this precisely confirms that Cambodia illegally entered the Thai border.
On July 20, a spokesperson for the Cambodian Ministry of Defense issued a statement saying that Thai soldiers changed their patrol routes and stepped on landmines within Cambodian territory, while Rattana claimed the landmines were in Thai territory, and Cambodia gave the same contradictory statement.
General Winthai stated that Thailand and the Thai military strictly abide by the obligations of international humanitarian law, and called on Cambodia to stop spreading false information that could affect international relations and international misunderstandings.
Original text: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1838205803035648/
Statement: The article represents the views of the author himself.