"While Thailand welcomes the initiative on the the Interim Observer Team (IOT) and the proposed ASEAN Observer Team (AOT), it is important to understand the key differences between the two.
For the IOT, the observer team is composed of defense attachés from ASEAN Member States already based in Thailand and Cambodia, enabling quicker deployment and operation of their observer mission.
By contrast, the AOT would require participating countries to dispatch military observers from their respective capitals. Such a process would involve additional domestic legal and administrative procedures under Thai law, which could slow down deployment. Thailand is fully supportive of the AOT in principle, but is mindful of such constraints, and the need for a timely mechanism that can function without delay.
In this context, Thailand believes that the IOT structure remains the most practical arrangement in ensuring that observer functions proceed without delay, while discussions on the AOT move forward. We remain ready to facilitate and support both arrangements in a manner that ensures timeliness, efficiency, and ASEAN’s unity of purpose." Russ Jalichandra, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs
อย่างไรก็ตาม แม้ประเทศไทยจะยินดีต้อนรับข้อริเริ่มในการจัดตั้งคณะผู้สังเกตการณ์ชั่วคราว (Interim Observer Team – IOT) และคณะผู้สังเกตการณ์อาเซียน (ASEAN Observer Team – AOT) แต่ก็เป็นสิ่งสำคัญที่จะต้องเข้าใจถึงความแตกต่างระหว่างสองกลไกนี้