THAI Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has cancelled his upcoming visit to Cambodia because of the deteriorating political situation in Bangkok, Cambodian Foreign Ministry officials said Monday.

Abhisit was scheduled to arrive Saturday in Phnom Penh for talks with Prime Minister Hun Sen, King Norodom Sihamoni and other senior officials, but backed out after escalating protests by anti-government demonstrators forced him to declare a state of emergency and deploy troops in the Thai capital.

"I received official notification that [Abhisit] has cancelled his trip to Phnom Penh because of the political chaos in Thailand," Foreign Ministry  spokesman Koy Kuong said.

Talks on the dispute over the two countries' shared  border were expected to be on the agenda at the weekend meeting, following discussions between the two leaders Friday on the sidelines of the aborted ASEAN summit in Thailand. Three Thai soldiers were killed in border clashes earlier this month.

Sam Rainsy Party spokesman Yim Sovann said recent border  fighting would hobble  negotiations and that the standoff was unlikely to be resolved through bilateral talks.

"Thailand has violated the sovereignty of Cambodia, and I think they have no political will to resolve the issue," he said Monday.