Thai FM: Thailand-Cambodia conciliation chair to be selected Friday

The chair of the Thailand-Cambodia Conciliation Commission, set up under the compulsory conciliation mechanism of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), will be selected on Friday.

Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow said that, after the selection of the chair, the commission is expected to hold its first meeting in September.

A list of about 10 qualified candidates had been submitted to Thailand and Cambodia for consideration. Thailand selected six candidates from the list, after which the chair will be chosen from among the candidates proposed by both countries.

He said the candidates on the UN list came from Europe, Asia and Latin America and had been selected based on their qualifications and suitability for the role.

The venue has yet to be decided but could be one of the locations where maritime-law offices are based, including The Hague in the Netherlands, Paris in France, Singapore or Vietnam.

Cambodia initiated the compulsory conciliation proceedings following Thailand's termination of the 2001 memorandum of understanding (MoU) on their overlapping maritime claims.

Thailand has appointed German jurist Rüdiger Wolfrum and South African maritime-law expert Albert J Hoffmann as its two conciliators.

Cambodia appointed Danish diplomat Peter Taksøe-Jensen and French international-law academic Jean-Marc Thouvenin as its two conciliators.

Sihasak serves as Thailand's agent in the proceedings, while Ambassador Songchai Chaipatiyut serves as deputy agent.

Sihasak also referred to Thailand's response to a statement by Tom Andrews, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia.

Thailand had already submitted its response to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN Human Rights Council.

Sihasak said the statement contained information that did not correspond with the facts and that Thailand had prepared a rebuttal.

The statement is expected to be considered at a UN forum, during which discussions will take place.

Thailand will use the opportunity to present its information and explain its concerns, he said, adding that Thailand was confident many countries would listen to its explanation and recognise that its actions had been within an appropriate framework.