Your Royal Highness Princess, Preah Anuch, Your Royal Highness,
Your Excellency, Madam, Members of the Senate,
Representatives of the Royal Government,
Your Excellency, Madam, Ladies and Gentlemen
According to item 44, before entering the agenda, if there is anything to be said, the chairman must speak first. Today, I would like to address my fellow countrymen regarding the situation on the Cambodian-Thai border. What I would like to emphasize is that I would ask my fellow citizens to be calm and believe in the capabilities of the Royal Government and the armed forces, as well as in the possibility of resolving this issue through negotiations rather than through armed force. The most frightening thing is the fake news and propaganda that leads to war between the two countries, as well as ethnic hatred that makes both countries lose the benefits in the relationship that derives from good cooperative relations.
The unfortunate incident that occurred when our soldiers were killed in a crossfire by the other side’s soldiers was something that should have been avoided. I should clarify this a little. I have clarified it on my Facebook page. This morning, the Prime Minister also emphasized the deployment of troops to the border. The deployment of troops and heavy weapons to the border is not to wage war, but to be prepared for a bad outcome in case the other side continues to violate. (In that case) we have the right to defend ourselves. We do not use the weapons that are being sent, some of which have reached their destination and some are about to reach their destination, to attack Thailand. Please note that we must prepare for the worst, because we had learnt this experience from 2008 to 2021.
I want to bring this issue to your attention here, my fellow countrymen, as well as to send a message to our counterpart, the Kingdom of Thailand. This time, I do not believe that it is the policy of the Royal Thai Government or the Prime Minister of Thailand or the Ministry of National Defense of Thailand that allows this to happen. What I have noticed is that this seems to have been done by individuals or organizations below. Early in the morning, the raids began. But at 6pm yesterday, they were withdrawn. If this was the government’s policy, perhaps this force would not have withdrawn. So, it is clear that it is not the policy of the Royal Thai Government or the Ministry of National Defense of Thailand or the entire Thai army. It could have come from any organization. This is just my guess. It is different from the incident that happened at Wat Keo Sikha Kiriswara in 2008.
Before the incident at Wat Keo Sikha Kiriswara in 2008, there was a debate in (the Thai) parliament by former Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej with opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva, in which the opposition claimed sovereignty over the Preah Vihear temple. I think Thailand would have had enough documents to cross-examine in parliament at that time. Then, when Cambodia put the Preah Vihear temple on the World Heritage List, they started bringing troops illegally into Wat Keo Sikha Kiriswara, while we were having electoral campaigning. In this situation, how should we assess it? At that time, there was an emergency meeting at my house in Takhmao with Defense Minister Tea Banh, Army Commander-in-Chief Ke Kim Yan, Pol Saroeun, Meas Sophea and some other leaders. We assessed that there were three possibilities and how each possibility should be handled. The first possibility is that the situation occurs only within the Preah Vihear temple, which is adjacent to Wat Keo Sikha Kiriswara. The second is that it can spread to the surrounding area. The third possibility is that war breaks out across the entire Cambodia-Thai border.
Since we were in the election campaign phase at that time, we also put forward different options. Option 1: If the situation is limited to Wat Keo Sikh Kiriswara and Preah Vihear, the election should be held normally without affecting any polling stations. Option 2: If it spreads beyond the surrounding area, we can close some polling stations. Option 3: If there is an outbreak of violence across the Cambodian-Thai border, there are two options: first, suspend the election in the provinces bordering the Cambodian-Thai border, and second, cancel the election to buy time for the war. Fortunately, because Samak Sundaravej was still in office, we also requested an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council. At that time, Samak Sundaravej called me and said that we should suspend this. I agreed to suspend it. Everything should be where it is. We suspended it there. We decided to hold the election. You may remember, the Cambodian People’s Party had won the elections increasing from 73 seats to 90 seats. This was an effort to prevent the conflict from spreading from the Preah Vihear area to other areas.
Then, when Samak Sundaravej was replaced by former Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat, the Thai Foreign Minister visited Cambodia. When the Thai Foreign Minister’s plane landed, he received news that the Thai army had entered the Eagle Valley. During the meeting with the Thai Foreign Minister, I said, “We talked in Phnom Penh about friendship, but at the border, your Excellency’s army entered the Eagle Valley, which is in the Cambodian territory. It is equivalent to shaking hands and stepping on feet. So please withdraw immediately. The best time to withdraw would be by 5pm. If you are not ready to withdrawn yet, do it tomorrow morning.” The Thai side also withdrew its troops. Maybe they were not satisfied, however, hey came back. They came in and clashed. At that time, we captured three prisoners, one of whom (wounded) in the thigh. We took care of him, protected him, and returned both the people and the weapons to Thailand.
The situation did not end there. In 2009, there was an armed clash in the Preah Vihear Temple area, and when that occurred, I was in Sihanoukville Province. Prawit Wongsuwan, the former Minister of Defense of Thailand, called me. He could not speak English, and I also had a hard time, but fortunately, Samdech Pichey Sena was with me. I handed him the phone so that we could talk (in Thai). We promised that in 20 minutes, we would all stop shooting. That was the case at Preah Vihear Temple. There are many marks of shooting there. Later, there were attacks all night. That night, we sent a letter to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, requesting an urgent meeting of the Security Council.
To call on the Security Council to take in the matter is not easy, but Cambodia must rely on the law to protect itself. We sent a delegation led by Samdech Issara Wites Panha Hor Namhong to the Security Council, and the Security Council also referred the matter to ASEAN, especially Indonesia, for responsibility. However, the story did not end there. It spread to the Ta Moan and Ta Kra Bei temples in 2011. Ta Moan and Ta Kra Bei also became the scene of a bloody battle. I would like to inform you that Cambodia used its restraint to the utmost extent, until even the army was confused.
I should mention here that the actual headquarters is at my house at the Independence Monument. Both the Minister of Defense, the relevant ministers, the Commander-in-Chief of the Army, all gathered at my house. At that time, we gave orders via video conference. We had trenches, we had video conferences in front of us. I still remember that General Chea Dara and General Chhin Chanpur in Samrong asked me for permission to fire artillery 40 kilometers into Thai territory in response to the artillery fire of the Thai army entering Samrong, Oddar Meanchey. I told General Chea Dara and General Chhin Chanpur that there was no point. If we did that, it would only create a conflict between artillery and artillery. The problem here is the infantry must keep your heads to the ground.
We are defending our territory. There is nothing to fear. I gave them 100 hours head start on using big guns. Neang Phat also met with Prawit Vongsuwan. Prawit Vongsuwan did not know that Cambodia had big guns because we had never shown. At that time, Channel News Asia showed the 155mm and 130mm shells of the Thai army, while our side they showed a B40. They did not know what kind of guns we had. The order at that time was to start fighting from 9am to 11am for three consecutive days. Suddenly, on the 4th, it changed, and we fought in the evening. So, I started to lose patience. Only 12 sets of BM21s were used, with about 100-milimitre guns on some 100 tanks. I said that tomorrow we will start fighting back against the big guns. The brothers in front grew impatient and tired and wondered why they were not allowed to give commands to fire big guns.
This shows the will of the Cambodian army, especially myself, who used to be a combatant, not a soldier who came out with no experience in combat. As a commander, a soldier, a soldier’s officer, and even more army creator. In the morning, I told our brothers when we gathered that the other side’s order had changed from fighting in the morning to fighting in the evening. Well, let’s wait and see until 11:30. Usually, there is a meal prepared at my house. After eating, His Excellency Pol Saroeun, who was the commander-in-chief at that time, said, “You go and rest.” That day, not many people knew about our artillery counterattack. At 6:30 in the morning, I called Chhin Chanpur to tell him that we had to use artillery. Take out all the targets. I told Samdech Pichey to tell a few other people who needed to know, especially Hing Bun Hieng because he commanded BM21. In addition to the BM21 of the ground army, there were BM21 of the bodyguard that had to be mobilized together. I also went up to rest.
At 3 o’clock, the phone started to ring. At that time, we set up a Metfone phone system with 4 numbers. It was easy to call. It was Chhin Chanpur who called and reported “Samdech, it has started.” I also asked Chhin Chanpur, “Have all the BM21s taken the target?” He said that there was one left. I told him to wait a little for all 12 sets to have their targets before starting to attack. When it was time, all the artillery and tanks fired altogether. I took the opportunity to take a shower. When I came back, the phone rang again. Picked up the phone and asked if all the targets were prepared? They were all prepared. “Now, start the attack immediately”. After the attack, I came down (from the other floor) and told Samdech Pichey Sena Tea Banh to get ready to receive a call from Prawit Vongsuwan. He would call in a little bit. His Excellency Prak Sokhon is the one recorded the event. 12 minutes later, Prawit Vongsuwan called.
The fact that we are sending troops to the border now is (only) a preventive measure. It is not a dispatch to attack Thailand. However, in the event of an invasion, we will absolutely defend our territorial integrity and sovereignty. Even though the Prime Minister is abroad, in the digital and online era, the Prime Minister can command the army at any time. Yesterday, the Prime Minister was very busy giving orders to the Commander-in-Chief and the army, because since the current Prime Minister was involved in the battles of Ta Moan, Ta Kra Bei, and Preah Vihear, he knows more about the geography than I do. The place where the problem occurred yesterday is where I went in 2009. Why they said it’s their territory? Before there was a pavillon, but it had burned down now. I went to sit there. That’s what disappointed me. Why did our soldiers have to die there?
I had not been a Prime minister who sits in an air conditioner room all the time. This Prime Minister sat in an air conditioner less than having his outside activities, no matter what. As a military man, I was a Prime Minister since the war was raging in the country. People may have seen many of my pictures. They are not from action movies.
When there is a situation at the border, I (went down) to the border. I went up to Preah Vihear Temple, I went to Mom Bei, where the gunfire broke out yesterday. Please note that we only want the situation to return to the original point, and we don’t want anything more. Then army and army cooperate. According to Commander-in-Chief Vong Pisen, Srey Duc will meet with the commander of that zone. Srey Duc is the commander of the 3rd Division and the deputy commander of the ground forces. The commander of the ground forces (of Cambodia) and the commander of the ground forces (of Thailand) will meet this evening. I hope that the army will find a solution to return the situation at the Triangle to before 5:30 a.m. on May 28th yesterday. That is enough. Please do not let this situation spread across the border and do not let this situation affect other cooperation such as economy, trade, investment, tourism, sports in all areas, including military cooperation.
My fellow countrymen, please do not push this issue to racial hatred. I see some comments on my page using inappropriate words. I beg you, do not use such cases to create racial hatred among neighboring countries. This has happened. Find a solution to calm this situation down. Promote mutual trust to benefit from cooperation. We and Thailand have a trade volume of approximately 10 billion. Thailand also has interests in the Cambodian market, and Cambodia also has interests in the Thai market. There are displaced people that the governor of Preah Vihear province reported to me. In addition to reporting to the government, they also reported to me. I took pictures of the evacuation of people from Morodok Techo village to two locations. I also received a call this morning from Oknha Leang Khun saying that he wanted to take pure water and other things to distribute to the soldiers. I said fine, please do it.
Then I received an audio message from a young man named So Sopheak, from the non-government sector, asking to contribute to the funeral (of a soldier who died). He always distributes humanitarian aid in Prey Lang, and asked to contribute 10,000 dollars to the funeral. The national defense foundation of the Cambodian people is very strong. Now that our military forces are moving to the front, supplies must come from the state, from the Ministry of National Defense, from all sides, but affiliated institutions must also participate.
I call on both sides to find a solution through negotiations because in an armed conflict, no one has his/her head sealed with iron. No matter the country is big or small. We tried in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, that is, for four years, using three targets – first, the military situation at the border is contained there. Second, diplomacy, opening the door to the United Nations Security Council, and third, sending the issue to the Hague Court to reinterpret the 1962 verdict. Let me tell one thing to Sondhi Limthongkul, who considered Cambodia an enemy in the past and is still an enemy of Cambodia now. At that time, Sondhi Limthongkul (claimed) that “Thais must attack and take Angkor Wat and then exchange it for the Temple of Preah Vihear.” I gave orders to the army and Pol Saroeun that the area of the Temple of Preah Vihear from Mom Bei, Ta Moan, Ta Krabey, and O Smach must be contained. That place is absolutely not allowed to enter. But if they dare to attack the Thmor Puok side, the Poipet side, should they wish to enter, let them enter.
I will explain my strategy. Why should I let them in? First, to show that they are attacking my land, so that the world can see. Second, when they are not deployed, the army is outside, but when deployed, the army is like a rubber band. The army stretches thin. We could them cut it off. You may want to listen to this Sondhi Limthongkul. You are not a general. How dare you use the idea that Thais must first capture Angkor Wat and then trade it for Preah Vihear. Techo Sen’s strategy allows you to enter for two purposes. First, to tell the world that you are attacking my land, and second, to thin your army so that I can cut it off in my territory. They have no iron head. They are not bringing trenches with them also. I would just like to bring up the past here.
Even though the conflict lasted four years, we did not do anything to affect other cooperation. It is true that during the 2008 election period, there was a stalemate at Wat Keo Sikh Kiriswara and Preah Vihear Temple, but we were able to vote. But in 2011, it spread to Ta Moan and Ta Krabei Temples. So. we have to reserve our troops (to the front line), which is not too strong, but ready, in case of a any eventual attack. We could not low down our guard.
I see a comment saying, “The Thai side is ready to prepare fighter jets, is Cambodia ready?” I would like to reiterate that Cambodia, especially Techo Sen, knows war strategy very well. I used to fight against American planes. South Vietnam fired at me but they didn’t hit me. I also used to command the Cambodian armed forces as Prime Minister. At that time, we had dozens of MIG-21s, but we never used MIGs to attack anywhere. On the contrary, one year, they were given 380 tons per plane for training. Later, I reduced it to 280 tons. I reduced it by 100 tons. Now Cambodia does not use planes for this kind of combat, but Cambodia has a sky net.
Some fools don’t know what a sky net is. What do they say about sky nets? Sky nets are bullets that go up from the ground. When they fly high, airplanes could not do anything. If they want to do something, they have to dive down. When they dive, thousands and thousands of bullets go from below. What is there to be afraid of? Well, in a land war, you don’t use airplanes to fight. Now, Cambodia has a good type of air defense that we can try to shoot 40 kilometers to the other side. But I don’t think all these types are necessary. You say that the Thai side has prepared fighter jets, this is just a provocation. If it is true, Cambodia should also tell them back that we have already prepared guns to shoot down airplanes.
You can see that with current technology, a plane can cost millions of dollars, but this one is only 300,000 to 400,000 dollars, which is a lot less expensive that a 5 million, 10 million, or 20 million dollars plane. In fact, (Ukrainian President) Zelenskyy wants F16s from the US and the West. Does Ukraine have superiority? No. Don’t rely too much on artillery. Don’t rely on drones, don’t rely on missiles, don’t rely on planes. As long as the infantry doesn’t arrive, don’t expect to win. Cambodia’s military strategy is like this.
But this is not a discussion about war, it is just something that happened and I mentioned it. Hopefully (the negotiations will be able to contain) the situation of the Mom Bei area to be only at Mom Bei, not to spread to the areas of Preah Vihear, Ta Moan, Ta Krabey and the entire border. This small separate military aspect should be left alone, not to be related to the joint military, not to be related to other sectors, especially the economy, trade, investment and many other issues that need to be addressed together.
I am no longer the Prime Minister, but as the President of the Senate, I have the right to speak. I leave the matter of ordering the army to the Prime Minister. They decided to send troops and heavy weapons to the border, and I give them my full support. Please call on our citizens to join in providing supplies. We are not lacking, but we are showing our willingness to prove the people’s national defense, which has been Hun Sen’s strategy from the beginning. Hun Sen cannot rely solely on the army, but on the support of the people. I hope that the Thai government and leadership also have the same mentality as Cambodia, which is to strengthen good neighborly relations. The visit last April by Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra also brought more fruits of cooperation, which should not have happened otherwise. Cambodia still insists on building a border with neighboring countries as a border of peace, friendship, cooperation and development. This is a real desire.
Please convey my greetings to all armed forces that are guarding the border, and send my greetings to the people along the border to maintain peace but also be careful. I am asking the Preah Vihear province, which has the Red Cross, to support, help take care of the refugees, who have been evacuated to other locations to ensure the safety. I will end with this note here./.
