Cambodia: Tanks are being massively moved near the capital Phnom Penh

Cambodian Defense Ministry spokesman General Chhum Socheat said on July 19 that the country's military is investigating a threat to stage a coup, based on a four-minute video in which a man calls for the overthrow of Prime Minister Hun Sen.

Images of tanks being moved from Preah Vihear to Phnom Penh were posted on Facebook (Source: Cambodia Daily)

The video was little known until it was published by Fresh News, a news network closely linked to the Cambodian People's Party (CPP), in a report saying the military was investigating.

At the same time, many other videos were also spread on Facebook showing many tanks being moved from a military base near Preah Vihear temple on the Thai border, towards the capital Phnom Penh on July 18.

General Socheat said the move was not related to the coup threat. In fact, he said, the tanks were being moved to another military base in Kompong Speu province, located about 45km west of Phnom Penh, along National Highway 4.

“Some tanks were brought from Preah Vihear to the Kompong Speu base for repairs, because it is the rainy season now, so we need to move them to a safe place,” said General Socheat. “We cannot leave tanks in the rain in the jungle.”

According to the Cambodia Daily, Cambodian Council of Ministers spokesman Phay Siphan said that there was no longer any reason to keep tanks near Preah Vihear temple because tensions with Thailand over the ownership dispute of this heritage have cooled down.

Meanwhile, researcher Long Kimkhorn, a military and international relations expert at Panasastra University in Phnom Penh, said that the military base in Kompong Speu has an important strategic location and is close to the capital Phnom Penh and is also home to the 911th Mobile Parachute Regiment.

"This move (of tanks) is definitely not for repairs, or just brought back due to some technical problems, but the move of these vehicles to Kompong Speu, which is a special military area, must be due to security issues in the capital rather than for repairs," he stressed.

The news comes as tens of thousands of people are expected to join the procession to bring the body of assassinated political analyst Kem Ley back to his hometown in Ta Keo province, about 70 km southwest of the capital Phnom Penh./.

According to Vietnam+