Singapore  - ASEAN chief Surin Pitsuwan has called for "maximum restraint" in the border dispute between Cambodia and Thailand, while Cambodia has asked for UN intervention, news reports said Sunday.

Nearly 1,000 Cambodian troops and more than 500 Thai soldiers continue to face each other on the disputed territory.

Surin Pitsuwan, secretary-general of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and a former Thai former minister, urged ministers from the two countries to talk, The Sunday Times said.

Manila - The Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) has emerged stronger in the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis that whipped Myanmar and the rice crisis that plagued several member countries,