Cambodia, Thailand Trade Fire in Fresh Border Clashes

外媒：柬埔寨和泰国边境冲突再起

作者：法新社         来源：伊洛瓦底江

Military personnel march during the official handover ceremony for the Royal Thai Army commander-in-chief in Bangkok on September 29, 2020. / AFP

9月29日，在曼谷举行的泰国皇家陆军总司令正式交接仪式上，军人列队行进。/法新社

PHNOM PENH—Cambodian and Thai troops exchanged fire in a new round of clashes on Thursday, hours after the two sides downgraded diplomatic relations in an escalating row over a disputed border.

金边——周四，柬埔寨和泰国军队在新一轮冲突中交火。数小时前，双方因边界争议不断升级而降低了外交关系。

The neighbors are locked in a bitter spat over an area known as the Emerald Triangle, where the borders of both countries and Laos meet, and which is home to several ancient temples.

这两个邻国在一个被称为“翡翠三角”的地区陷入了激烈的争吵，这是两国和老挝边境的交汇处，那里有几座古老的寺庙。

The squabble has dragged on for decades, flaring into bloody miliary clashes more than 15 years ago and again in May, when a Cambodian solider was killed in a firefight.

这场争吵已经持续了几十年，15年前爆发了血腥的军事冲突，今年5月又爆发了一次，当时一名柬埔寨士兵在交火中丧生。

A Cambodian government source told AFP that violence broke out again on Thursday morning near two temples on the border between the Thai province of Surin and Cambodia’s Oddar Meanchey.

柬埔寨政府消息人士告诉法新社，周四上午，在泰国素林省和柬埔寨Oddar Meanchey省交界处的两座寺庙附近再次发生暴力事件。

“The Thai military violated the territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Cambodia by launching an armed assault on Cambodian forces stationed to defend the nation’s sovereign territory,” Cambodian Defense Ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata said in a statement.

柬埔寨国防部发言人Maly Socheata在一份声明中说：“泰国军队对驻守保卫国家主权领土的柬埔寨军队发动武装袭击，侵犯了柬埔寨王国的领土完整。”

“In response, the Cambodian armed forces exercised their legitimate right to self-defense, in full accordance with international law, to repel the Thai incursion and protect Cambodia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

“作为回应，柬埔寨武装部队完全按照国际法行使了正当的自卫权，以击退泰国的入侵，保护柬埔寨的主权和领土完整。”

According to the Thai army, the incident began at around 7:35 a.m. when a unit guarding Ta Muen temple heard a Cambodian drone overhead.

据泰国军方称，事件发生在早上7点35分左右，当时守卫塔门寺的部队听到头顶上有柬埔寨无人机。

Later, six armed Cambodian soldiers, including one carrying a rocket-propelled grenade, approached a barbed-wired fence in front of the Thai post, the army said.

军方说，随后，六名柬埔寨武装士兵，包括一名携带火箭推进榴弹的士兵，走近泰国哨所前的铁丝网。

Thai soldiers shouted to warn them, the army said, but at around 8:20 a.m., Cambodian forces opened fire toward the eastern side of the temple, about 200 metres from the Thai base.

泰国军方说，泰国士兵大声警告他们，但在上午8点20分左右，柬埔寨军队向寺庙东侧开火，那里距离泰国基地约200米。

Thailand’s acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai said “the situation requires careful handling, and we must act in accordance with international law”.

泰国代理总理蓬谭说：“目前的局势需要谨慎处理，我们必须按照国际法行事。”

“We will do our best to protect our sovereignty,” he said.

“我们将尽最大努力保护我们的主权，”他说。

Long-running row 长时间运行的行

The clash came hours after Thailand expelled the Cambodian ambassador and recalled its own envoy in protest after five members of a Thai military patrol were wounded by a landmine.

冲突发生的几个小时前，泰国驱逐了柬埔寨大使，并召回了自己的特使，以抗议泰国一支军事巡逻队的五名成员被地雷炸伤。

Wechayachai said an investigation by the Thai military found evidence that Cambodia had laid new landmines in the disputed border area—a claim denied by Phnom Penh.

韦差猜说，泰国军方的一项调查发现，有证据表明柬埔寨在有争议的边境地区埋设了新的地雷——金边否认了这一说法。

On Thursday morning, Cambodia announced it was downgrading ties to “the lowest level”, pulling out all but one of its diplomats and expelling their Thai equivalents from Phnom Penh.

周四上午，柬埔寨宣布将两国关系降至“最低级别”，并从金边撤出除一名外交官外的所有外交官，并驱逐泰国外交官。

Recent weeks have seen a series of tit-for-tat swipes by both sides, with Thailand restricting border crossings and Cambodia halting certain imports.

最近几周，双方采取了一系列针锋相对的行动，泰国限制过境，柬埔寨停止了某些进口。

The Thai army said in a statement that one soldier lost his leg in the landmine blast, and others suffered ear injuries and chest pain.

泰国军方在一份声明中说，一名士兵在地雷爆炸中失去了一条腿，其他人耳朵受伤，胸痛。

Cambodia’s Defense Ministry on Wednesday night “categorically rejected the unfounded accusations” made by Thailand.

柬埔寨国防部周三晚间“断然驳斥了”泰国“毫无根据的指控”。

The ministry said the border areas still contained “many landmines left over from past wars” which have not been fully cleared.

国防部表示，边境地区仍然有“许多过去战争遗留下来的地雷”，这些地雷尚未完全清除。

The border row also kicked off a domestic political crisis in Thailand, where Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has been suspended from office pending an ethics probe over her conduct.

边境争端也引发了泰国国内的政治危机，泰国总理佩通坦.钦那瓦已被停职，等待对她的行为进行道德调查。

A diplomatic call between Paetongtarn and Hun Sen, Cambodia’s former longtime ruler and father of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, was leaked from the Cambodian side, sparking a judicial investigation.

佩通坦与柬埔寨前长期统治者洪森（Hun Sen）之间的外交通话从柬埔寨方面泄露，引发了一场司法调查。洪森是柬埔寨首相洪马内（Hun Manet）的父亲。

Last week, Hun Manet announced that Cambodia would start conscripting civilians next year, activating a long-dormant mandatory draft law.

上周，洪马内宣布柬埔寨将于明年开始征召平民，启动一项长期搁置的强制性法律草案。

作者：法新社         来源：伊洛瓦底江