Thailand yesterday recalled its ambassador to Cambodia after Phnom Penh gave a job to fugitive former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, further raising tensions between the countries.
The Cambodian government said on Wednesday night that it had appointed Thaksin as an economics adviser, riling Bangkok, which is trying to bring Thaksin home to face justice three years after he was ousted in a coup.
“We have recalled the ambassador as the first diplomatic retaliation measure to let the Cambodian government know the dissatisfaction of the Thai people,” Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva told reporters.
“Last night’s announcement by the Cambodian government harmed the Thai justice system and really affected Thai public sentiment,” Abhisit said.
Abhisit said aid to Cambodia would be halted, but checkpoints on the disputed border would remain open and “people-to-people relations would not be affected.”
A government official said earlier that the ambassador to Phnom Penh would be recalled in retaliation for Cambodia’s “interference” in Thai politics.
“The reason is that the appointment of Thaksin is considered interfering in our internal politics because Thaksin is still actively involved in politics,” Chavanond Intarakomalyasut, secretary to the foreign affairs minister, told reporters.
Thaksin remains a hugely influential figure in Thailand, where he has stirred up mass protests against Abhisit’s government in the past year.
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