The Cambodian Mine Action Center (CMAC) has sent two trained mine detection dogs to Botswana, where they will live and work. The move marks a symbolic and practical milestone in international cooperation on humanitarian demining. CMAC director-general Heng Ratana announced on February 2 that the dogs were transferred through the Nonviolent Peaceforce Asia (NPA), a long-time partner organisation that has worked with CMAC since 1992–93. The move comes years after CMAC originally purchased dogs from Botswana for mine action work in Cambodia. Describing the transfer as a “strengthening of ownership”, Ratana said the return of the dogs reflects Cambodia’s growing…
Author: Raksmey Hong
Comments by Anutin Charnvirakul, the Bhumjaithai Party leader and prime ministerial candidate in Thailand, pledging to defend Thai sovereignty and the monarchy, have drawn sharp criticism from a prominent Cambodian analyst. Speaking at a rally at Bangkok’s Lumpini Park last Friday, Anutin emphasised that protecting Thailand’s land and the monarchy would remain his top priorities. “I promise to protect Thai land with my life. I will not open the Thai-Cambodian border unless the Thai people demand otherwise, and I will never allow anyone to infringe upon my duty to listen to the wishes of the Thai people,” he said. Anutin…
Cambodia’s fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector is facing mounting pressure as border disruptions and illicit trade expose weaknesses in consumer protection and market enforcement, participants heard at the EuroCham FMCG Forum 2026 on January 30. Organised by the European Chamber of Commerce in Cambodia (EuroCham), the forum brought together senior government officials, industry leaders and consumer advocates amid growing concern that recent regional developments — particularly the Cambodia–Thailand border situation — are affecting supply chains, product availability and consumer trust. Opening the forum, EuroCham executive director Martin Brisson said the FMCG sector, which reaches millions of Cambodian consumers daily, is…
The Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) will host three high-level summits with the top leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam and the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party on February 6–7. The events will consist of two bilateral meetings and one trilateral summit, underscoring Cambodia’s role as a convening platform for party diplomacy and regional leadership engagement. “The first bilateral summit will be held between the Standing Committee of the CPP Central Committee, led by Hun Sen, CPP president and president of the Cambodian Senate and the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam, led by To Lam,…
Cambodia and Thailand have agreed to return to their respective military headquarters to await further negotiations after a bilateral border committee meeting ended without reaching common ground, according to a statement from Cambodia’s Ministry of National Defence. “A meeting of the Cambodia–Thailand Regional Border Committee (RBC), involving Cambodia’s Military Region 4 and Thailand’s Army Area 2, was held at the Choam–Sa Ngam International Point of Entry in Anlong Veng district, Oddar Meanchey province, at 11.50am this morning,” explained ministry spokesperson Maly Socheata on February 2. The talks were monitored by the ASEAN Observer Teams (AOT) of both countries. “Despite discussions,…
Minister of Health Chheang Ra has praised medical staff at Poipet Referral Hospital as “frontline heroes” for continuing to provide life-saving services to civilians, displaced families and security forces amid the recent armed clashes along the Thai-Cambodian border. During a February 1 inspection tour of the hospital, the minister said the dedication of health workers during the conflict amounted to a visible form of national defence, describing their work as a vital contribution to protecting lives under extraordinary circumstances. “Every positive action taken by you is an act of life-saving protection recognised by the Cambodian nation,” the minister said, likening…
The Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction has ordered the immediate evacuation of the former Padivath Primary School building in Daun Penh district, Phnom Penh, after experts determined the structure faces an imminent risk of collapse. The building once housed the US embassy in Cambodia, before being repurposed as a school. At present, only the ground floor is reportedly occupied. “A renewed technical assessment conducted by specialists from the General Department of Construction and the National Construction Laboratory found the building’s structural integrity had severely deteriorated,” the ministry said, in a January 30 statement. According to the findings,…
What began as a charity run to support arts education along the Sangker River has evolved into an urgent humanitarian response, as the Sangker River Charity Run 2026 was repurposed to assist the families displaced by the recent border crisis. Held on January 25, the event drew more than 400 participants to the banks of the river in Battambang province, turning a community sport gathering into a coordinated fundraising effort for emergency relief. Organisers said the shift in focus reflected the immediate needs of affected communities, many of whom were forced to seek temporary shelter in Battambang province. “The situation…
Cambodia has urged Thailand to respond and move forward on long-delayed border demarcation work, warning it will not recognise any alteration of the boundary line resulting from the use of force, while lodging a strong protest over actions by the Thai military that continue to affect Cambodian civilians. In a January 31 statement, the State Secretariat of Border Affairs said the Thai side has yet to officially respond to Cambodia’s note verbale dated January 13, which requested the resumption of joint survey and demarcation activities along disputed boundary segments. “Those include areas between Boundary Pillars 42–47 and 52–59, as well…
Prime Minister Hun Manet has reiterated that Cambodia’s decision to provide temporary shelters for civilians displaced from border areas does not constitute any concession of territorial integrity. He stressed that the Kingdom would continue to assert its sovereignty through diplomatic, legal and technical mechanisms in line with international law. Speaking during a January 31 visit to a sanctuary for displaced families at Wat Bak Kam in Preah Vihear province’s Tbaeng Meanchey district, the prime minister said the evacuation and sheltering of civilians from so-called red zones or areas encircled by Thai military forces was a humanitarian necessity, not a political…