Cambodia says would reject extradition of Thaksin

Cambodia announced Friday it would reject any Thai request to extradite ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra if he accepts an invitation for refuge in Cambodia, further straining bilateral ties during a key regional summit.

Thaksin was ousted as Thai prime minister in a 2006 military coup. He was sentenced to jail in absentia last year and lives in exile. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen this week pronounced Thaksin a "political victim" and said he was welcome to stay in Cambodia.

Thailand responded that it would seek Thaksin's extradition if he took up the offer, under a treaty agreed by two countries in 2001. But in a statement Friday, Cambodia said it has "the legal ground to absolutely reject any extradition" because a request would be based on a "political offense."

Relations between Cambodia and Thailand are already strained over a sometimes violent border dispute over a parcel of land around an 11th century Khmer temple, and Hun Sen's offer to Thaksin will have irked Thailand's current Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva.

Despite being convicted for conflict of interest and sentenced to two years in jail, tycoon Thaksin remains politically popular in rural Thailand and his supporters are rallying for his return.

"It appears that Hun Sen also wants to openly ally himself with rivals of Abhisit's government because he hasn't been happy with how this government has handled the border dispute. The issue of Thaksin is one that was sure to cause jitters in Thailand," said Sukhum Nuansakul, a political scientist at Bangkok's Ramkhamhaeng University.

Hun Sen's offer comes at a sensitive time, as Abhisit hosts the summit of Asian leaders - including the Cambodian premier.

Thousands of police and troops have been mobilized for the Association of South East Asian Nations summit at a beach resort south of Bangkok, starting Friday, to prevent protests by Thaksin supporters who overran a previous summit in April, forcing the emergency evacuation of several Asian leaders - a huge embarrassment to Thailand and Abhisit.

The Thai government, however, has been anxious to play down the impact of Hun Sen's comments, apparently to minimize Thaksin's influence within Thailand and in the region.

Meanwhile Thaksin, who lives in exile, thanked Hun Sen for the offer in a twitter message Thursday.

"I want to express my deepest gratitude to Prime Minister Hun Sen for saying to the public that I am his friend," Thaksin said on his Twitter account, Thaksinlive. "I would also like to thank him for arranging a house for me."

Since the coup, Thai officials have revoked Thaksin's passports. He has surfaced in places including Dubai, Hong Kong, Nicaragua, Liberia and Montenegro in pursuit of investment opportunities.