C o-Premier Prince Norodom Ranarridh said the government would take over

contracts made between Thai businessmen and the Khmer Rouge following the fall

of the guerrillas' headquarters at Pailin. But he added that trading would only

resume when security stabilized at the border.

The prime minister stated:

"Before talking about any contracts we must talk about security in that region

which must exist on both sides of the border."

Earlier, the Prince's

Co-Premier Hun Sen was reported to have said that contracts Thai businessmen

made would be honored.

The government has also said that it planned to

make Pailin into an economic development zone.