Thai-Burma accord to end sea disput

[suriya@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Subject: Thai-Burma accord to end sea dispute


Headlines 
Thai-Burma accord to end sea dispute
THAILAND and Burma took significant steps yesterday to solve their maritime
boundary dispute by agreeing to maximise restraint to avoid further
confrontation at sea pending the demarcation of overlapping maritime zones in
the Andaman Sea. 
They also agreed that the demarcation process must be accelerated to put a
permanent end to the problem. Burma had never admitted there were grey areas
and insisted that disputed Koh Khan, Koh Khi Nok and Koh Larm were in Burmese
waters as a result of an 1868 Anglo-Siamese treaty. 
The present agreement was reached during the meeting between Foreign Minister
Surin Pitsuwan and his visiting Burmese counterpart Win Aung yesterday. 
Pending the demarcation, the ministers also agreed on a set of interim
measures
to prevent future conflicts. These include vessels of one country raising
their
national flag when entering the other's waters, setting up a joint patrol
between the two naval commands and exchanging visits and contacts at various
levels, in particular at the naval-command level. 
Emphasising exchange, Surin said frequent contacts would boost confidence and
understanding between the two sides. 
A hotline link has also been established between the two Foreign ministries
following the naval conflicts. 
Surin said details of the measures will be discussed at the meeting of the
Regional Border Committee slated for March 15-16 in Phuket. Naval
commanders of
both sides will then have a chance to meet, he added. 
A series of clashes between fishing boats, and Thai and Burmese naval vessels
in the Andaman Sea left two Thai naval officers and three Burmese fishermen
dead and sparked a flurry of accusations from both sides. 
Surin said the clashes had been caused not only by unclear demarcation of
territorial waters but also by cross-border illegal activities. 
This, he stated, involved smuggling and deliberate entries into each other's
maritime zones, both of which have been a lucrative source of kickbacks. 
He said both sides thus needed short- and long-term measures to ease
misunderstanding. 
The agreement reached by the two ministers marked a significant shift in the
conduct of bilateral relations between the two neighbours, whose military
relationship has been a dominant factor. 
The two ministers' visit to disputed zones off the coast of Ranong province

was
a symbolic gesture and an unprecedented move. 
In previous conflicts there has been no joint inspection by senior government
officials of disputed areas: only directors-general from the two sides were
involved. 
Win Aung said his meeting with Surin had helped promote a friendly environment
and better understanding between the two nations. 
''The most important thing [to help solve pending problems] is to have the
political will on both sides,'' Win Aung told reporters after returning from
his Ranong trip. 
Critics believed the success of Win Aung's trip to Thailand might have been
exaggerated by both sides to cover up the negative aspects of the complicated
relations between Asean and the European Union over Burma. 
They said the improved relations between the two neighbours would be at the
expense of Thailand's and Asean's relations with the West, which has continued
to isolate Burma for its poor human rights records. 
Win Aung's Asean-familiarisation tour of Brunei, Indonesia, Singapore and
Thailand was placed at the centre of bickering between Asean and the European
Union over Burma's participation in the March Asean-EU Ministerial Meeting
(AEMM) in Berlin. 
Thailand, which is the Asean coordinator for the meeting, has been trying to
save this meeting, which is significant as it would strengthen bloc-to-bloc
relations. 
But the deadlock seems unbreakable and the AEMM will be postponed
indefinitely.
The EU insists Win Aung may not attend since it has slapped visa bans on
senior
members of Burma's military junta. 
Asean, which granted membership to Burma two years ago, has insisted that the
meeting is a bloc-to-bloc discussion so there should be no discrimination
against Burma. The group will not attend the meeting without the presence of
the Burmese Foreign Minister. 
Surin, who will leave tomorrow on his second trip to Europe in a month,
said he
would propose that Asean and the European Union set aside the controversial
AEMM meeting and opt for a junior-level forum to thrash out their
differences. 
Speaking after attending a meeting between Win Aung and Prime Minister Chuan
Leekpai, Surin said the Joint Cooperative Committee (JCC) meeting between the
two groups, which has been postponed indefinitely since November, should be
resumed before an Asean-EU ministerial-level meeting takes place. 
The AEMM is due to take place every 18 months, while the JCC meeting is
scheduled for once a year, so the AEMM can wait, Surin said without
elaboration. 
BY RITA PATIYASEVI and 
MARISA CHIMPRABHA 
The Nation