Press Conference HE. Sok An Deputy Prime Minister 1

Press Conference HE. Sok An Deputy Prime Minister after UNESCO, World Heritage Committee Meeting on 33rd Session 2009 at Seville, Espanola Seville, June 30, 2009 INSCRIPTION OF THE TEMPLE OF PREAH VIHEAR, CAMBODIA, DID NOT PROVOKE LONG-PLANNED INVASION BY THAILAND On the eve of the 33rd Session of the World Heritage Committee, senior Thai officials, including the Prime Minister, the Foreign Minister, and the head of the Thai delegation, made a series of surprising attacks on UNESCO and the Committee. In continuing to object to last years unanimous decision by the Committee to inscribe the Preah Vihear Temple as a World Heritage Site, the Thai officials blamed the inscription for having caused fighting at and around the Temple in the past year. In fact, it was the unilateral military actions of the Thai government that caused the fighting. In the interest of the preservation and development of the Temple, Cambodia requested that it be inscribed at the 2007 session of the World Heritage Committee at Christchurch. Thai objections to its listing were addressed by Cambodia the following year. As Thailand previously had agreed to support the inscription at the 2008 meeting in Quebec City, Cambodia again had the inscription put on the agenda. Unfortunately, by the time of the 2008 session, political turmoil in Bangkok forced the Thai government to withdraw its support and argue for postponement. However, with Cambodia having met its obligations, the Committee unanimously decided …