Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim says newly-appointed Thai prime minister Anutin Charnvirakul is committed to ensuring peace between Thailand and Cambodia.
Anwar said the matter was conveyed to him during a phone call with Anutin earlier this week.
“He assured me that he remains committed to ensuring that peace between Cambodia and Thailand will be fully respected and honoured,” he said in his opening address at the 19th Asean Ministerial Meeting on Transnational Crime (AMMTC) here.
Anwar also said his discussions with Anutin touched on collaboration between countries.
Anutin, 58, who is the leader of the Bhumjaithai Party, officially assumed the position of the 32nd prime minister of Thailand on Sunday, after receiving royal endorsement, marking a new chapter in the country’s political leadership.
On July 28, Anwar, in his capacity as Asean chair, convened a special meeting at his official residence, Seri Perdana in Putrajaya, which was attended by Cambodian prime minister Hun Manet and Thailand’s then acting prime minister, Phumtham Wechayachai.
The two-and-a-half-hour meeting was their first face-to-face encounter since tensions erupted between the two neighbours on July 24.
At a joint press conference after the meeting, Anwar announced that Thailand and Cambodia had agreed to an immediate and unconditional ceasefire amid rising tensions along their disputed border.
Cambodia and Thailand are actively working to establish lasting peace along their 817km border, which has been a source of contention and has led to military confrontations in the Oddar Meanchey and Preah Vihear border areas.
