AFP
BANGKOK - Thailand and Cambodia recalled their respective ambassadors Thursday after Phnom Penh sparked a furious diplomatic row by naming fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra as its economic adviser.
The tit-for-tat withdrawals plunged relations between the neighbouring countries to a new low after they fought a series of deadly clashes during the past year over disputed land around an ancient temple on their border.
The Cambodian government announced the appointment of Thaksin on state television late Wednesday, riling Bangkok as it attempts to bring home the billionaire 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.
Aid projects and bilateral agreements with Cambodia would be reviewed, but checkpoints on the tense border would remain open, Abhisit added.
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