The meeting of the Thai-Cambodian Joint Commission on the Demarcation for Land Boundary (JBC) began on 7 April 2011 in Bogor, Indonesia, with the Thai delegation being led by Ambassador Asda Jayanama, and the Cambodian delegation led by Senior Minister Var Kim Hong.  Convened with Indonesia’s support and facilitation, the meeting – organized in a bilateral setting and as part of the JBC framework – reflects the fact that bilateral processes continue to serve as viable mechanisms for Thailand and Cambodia to resolve issues between them.

On its first day, the meeting was able to make headway in discussions on many issues relating to its work.  The Thai side took the opportunity to inform the Cambodian side of the progress made on the former’s internal legal process towards approval of the three agreed minutes of the previous meetings of the JBC, currently under the consideration of the Thai Parliament. The Cambodian side took note of this and expressed its understanding of Thailand’s internal procedure.

Pending the afore-mentioned parliamentary consideration on the Thai side, the two delegations discussed preparations for the works which would be undertaken once the three agreed minutes are approved.  These include for the dispatch of the Thai-Cambodian joint field survey to conduct its work in Sector 5 between boundary pillars 1-23 and the qualifications of a company to work on the production of the Orthophoto maps.
Both delegations would continue their meeting on 8 April 2011 at 10.00 hrs. to discuss other items on their agenda, including the opening of a new international point of entry with the focus being on issues related to the mandate of the JBC.

Overall, the first day of the JBC meeting, which was held in a friendly atmosphere, serves to affirm the commitment of both Thailand and Cambodia to work together through existing bilateral mechanisms to resolve peacefully problems that have arisen between them. 

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8 April 2011