PHNOM PENH, February 4, 2011 (AFP) - Thai and Cambodian soldiers exchanged heavy arms fire near a disputed temple on the two countries' shared border on Friday, officials said, as tensions between the neighbours boiled over.Chhum Socheat, a spokesman for the Cambodian Ministry of Defence, said both sides were using "mortar and artillery". The Thai army reported two wounded in the skirmish, which follows reports of a military buildup on both sides of the border in recent days. Shells had landed close to the ancient Preah Vihear temple area, which is claimed by both sides, locals said, but reports suggested the fighting later subsided.
Thai Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwon played down the significance of the incident. "We are negotiating now and I am sure that everything will be fine," he said.
Both Thailand and Cambodia accused the other of starting the fighting, the first since April 2009.
Cambodia's state news agency reported that "at least four" Thai soldiers were believed to have been captured, quoting government spokesman Phay Siphan, accusing Thai troops of "invading".
"We have a right to self-defence against the Thai invasion to protect our land," he said.
Thai Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban said he did not know what had initially sparked it. "They fired at us first so we retaliated," he said. A Thai army official at the border said fighting broke out at 3.10pm local time (0810 GMT) at Phu Makuea, near the 11th-century temple.
Residents in nine villages along the Thai side of the frontier have been asked to take shelter or leave the area, said a senior district official at Kantharalak in the border province of Si Sa Ket.
Cambodia is also evacuating villages in the area.
Thailand's Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya was Friday in Cambodia for talks with his Cambodian counterpart. Tensions between the two countries have flared in recent weeks in the wake of the arrest of seven Thai nationals for illegal entry into Cambodia in late December.
Five of the group were given suspended sentences and have since returned to Thailand. The other two, high-profile nationalist activist Veera Somkwamkid and his secretary, were sentenced to lengthy jail terms for spying, in a case that has caused outrage among Thailand's "Yellow Shirts".
Another border spat has focused on the Keo Sikha Kiri Svara Pagoda, which is built in the disputed area. Thailand on Monday demanded that Cambodia remove its flag from the pagoda, which it said was "situated on Thai territory" -- a claim Cambodia vehemently rejects.
Both sides have been talking tough on the border issue, which some observers say serves nationalist goals at home on both sides. But a foreign observer who did not wish to be named expressed surprise at the clash as both armies had appeared to be keen to ease hostilities.
"They will try to calm any increase in tensions coming from the politicians. They do not want to fight, especially not over politics," he said.
Ties between the neighbouring countries have been strained since July 2008 by a series of deadly border clashes over land surrounding the temple after it was granted UN World Heritage status.
The World Court ruled in 1962 that Preah Vihear itself belonged to Cambodia, although its main entrance lies in Thailand. The exact boundary through the surrounding grounds remains in dispute.
The Thai-Cambodia border has never been fully demarcated, partly because it is littered with landmines left over from decades of war in Cambodia.
Hundreds of Yellow Shirts have camped out around Government House in Bangkok since last week, demonstrating against its handling of the border dispute, and the group plans a larger rally on Saturday. Yellow Shirts are a force to be reckoned with in Thailand's colour-coded politics and have helped to claim the scalps of three governments in under five years, including that of fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
