DAP: The breaking news in Cambodia: “Thai gov't appoints spokesmen on disputed border issue with Cambodia” plus 3 more

BANGKOK, Jan. 3 (Xinhua) -- Thai government has decided to set up a team of spokesmen to handle disputed Thai-Cambodia border issue.

ACM Prajin Jantong, air force commander, said on Wednesday that Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has agreed to set up a new spokesman team to handle the disputed area around the ancient hindu Preah Vihear temple.

Cambodia has submitted a request to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) seeking clarification of its 1962 verdict, which awarded Cambodia ownership of the temple. Some of the area around the temple has since been disputed.

The ICJ has called oral hearings on April 15-19, when Thailand and Cambodia will make their cases to the court. The verdict is expected to be handed down in October.

The Preah Vihear spokesman team would be responsible for promoting better understanding among the public of the border dispute with Cambodia.

The team, comprising three parties -- civilians, police and military officers, would also provide information about the progress of the government's resolution of the dispute, ACM Prajin said.

PHNOM PENH, Jan. 3 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia has greeted some 3.2 million foreigners in the first eleven months of 2012, up 24 percent compared with 2.58 million visitors in the same period a year earlier, showed the latest statistics of Tourism Ministry on Thursday.

From January to November last year, Vietnam topped the chart among the top ten arrivals to the country with 699,650 visitors, up 24 percent year-on-year, followed by South Korea with 367,950 visitors, up 21 percent, and China with 297,920, up 35 percent, the report said.

It added that its neighbors -- Laos and Thailand -- ranked No. 4 and 5 respectively. About 225,020 Laotians and 177,320 Thais visited Cambodia during the period, up 95 percent and 75 percent respectively.

According to the report, 48 percent of visitors came to Cambodia by air, 50 percent by overland ways and the rest by waterway.

The report also said that during the period, around 726,220 Cambodians traveled overseas, up 13 percent year-on-year.

Tourism is one of the four pillars supporting Cambodian economy. In 2011, the sector attracted 2.88 million foreign tourists, earning 1.91 billion U.S. dollars.

PHNOM PENH, Jan. 3 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Thursday appealed to both Cambodians and Thais along the border to get on with each other to build a border of peace, friendship, cooperation and development.

"All authorities along the two countries' border provinces should try to build up good relations for the two peoples in order to honor the two governments' policy," Hun Sen said during an inauguration ceremony of achievements in western Pailin province bordering Thailand's Chanthaburi province.

The ceremony was also attended by Phunsak Pranutnoraphan, governor of Chanthaburi province, and other Thai military commanders along the border.

"I wish to see people along the border to live in peace without worrying about gunfire exchange and house fire," he said. "I'd like to urge the governors, all levels of authorities, and armed forces of the two nations' border provinces to be friendly to each other to build a border of peace and cooperation."

Meanwhile, the premier warned that Thai side should not frequently close border checkpoints.

"Be careful, when you (Thai authorities) close the frontier, and Cambodia closes too, at that time, and Thailand will get loss because Thailand exports products to Cambodia in equivalent to more than 2 billion U.S. dollars a year, while Cambodia exports items to Thailand only around 200 million U.S. dollars," he said.

Cambodia shares 805 km of border with Thailand to the west and northwest.

The two neighbors have had sporadic border conflicts over territorial dispute near Cambodia's Preah Vihear temple since the UNESCO listed the temple as a World Heritage Site on July 7, 2008, but Thailand claims the ownership of 4.6 square kilometers of scrub next to the temple.

Fierce clashes between the two sides happened in February and April 2011 during Thailand's Democrat Party rule.

However, the two countries have seen improving ties since August, 2011 when the former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's Pheu Thai Party won the general election and led the current government.