Cabinet to discuss appointing Thai JTC next week for Cambodia talks
Government maintains MOU44 a key instrument for maritime negotiations
The Foreign Ministry will ask the Cabinet next week to consider appointing Thailand’s Joint Technical Committee members to hold talks with Cambodia over the overlapping claims area (OCA) in the Gulf of Thailand, a vice foreign minister said on Wednesday.
Russ Jalichandra said that Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa would ask the Cabinet on November 19 to approve the Thai JTC members so that the two countries could start negotiations on the maritime boundary and joint development of OCA areas.
Despite calls by the opposition Palang Pracharath Party and groups of nationalists for the Thai government to annul MOU44 – the memorandum of understanding with Cambodia signed in 2001 – Russ explained that MOU44 was still needed as a framework for negotiations for the JTC.
Russ cited three main reasons to back up the need for MOU44:
First of all, MOU44 simply specified the framework and mechanism for holding talks between Thailand and Cambodia over their overlapping claims to the continental shelves, which dates back more than 50 years.
He said MOU44 required the two nations to negotiate both maritime boundaries and the sharing of benefits from exploitation of natural resources at the same time in line with the international maritime law.
Russ noted that MOU44 simply set the framework for negotiations and without any outcome yet, it did not need endorsement from Parliament.
Secondly, Russ said, once the negotiations are done, the results must be submitted to Parliament for approval before they take legal effect.
Russ explained that the negotiation results were required by the Constitution to be approved by the Thai people’s representatives in Parliament – MPs and senators – before they could take effect on Thai sovereignty regarding the maritime boundaries and exploitation of natural resources.
He said past governments always cited MOU44 as a framework for protecting national interest.
He said although the Cabinet of then prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva resolved in principle to annul MOU44, the resolution added that a comprehensive study on the pros and cons must be held before the revocation.
Russ said after all government agencies concerned studied MOU44, they found it had more benefits than drawbacks and the Cabinet of another government resolved in 2014 to uphold the MOU44.
The revocation of MOU44 would not end Cambodia’s claims to maritime territory along the continental shelf, Russ said.
Thirdly, Ko Kut in Trat province is clearly sovereign Thai territory since 1907 as per the Siam-Franco treaty. MOU44 could not hand the territory over to Cambodia, Russ clarified.
