The US has formally lifted its arms embargo on Cambodia, a policy shift effective February 3, 2026. The move was widely seen as an indication of improved relations between the two nations during the presidency of Donald Trump. The embargo lift is intended to foster deeper defence ties and address shared security challenges in Southeast Asia, with the US seeking support for the Free Indo-Pacific strategy. The move was initially announced by the White House in October last year and was implemented through amendments to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) by the Department of State on November 7,…
Author: Niem Chheng
The attendees of today’s meeting of the Cambodia-Thailand Regional Border Committee (RBC) have once again failed to reach a consensus, with both sides withdrawing to their respective headquarters, according to the Ministry of National Defence. Ministry spokesperson Maly Socheata stated that the RBC meeting was held on February 4 between Cambodia’s Military Region 3 and Thailand’s Chanthaburi-Trat Border Defense Command. The meeting took place at the Cham Yeam-Hat Lek International Point of Entry in Mondol Seima district, Koh Kong province. The meeting was monitored by the ASEAN Observer Teams (AOT) of Cambodia and Thailand. The Cambodian secretariat team was led…
Cambodia has registered strong objections after Thai officials led journalists, foreign military personnel and FBI officials on an inspection tour of a location 397 metres inside Cambodian territory, noting that the action was a violation of international law and the UN charter. In a February 4 press release, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation announced that it had lodged a protest against the unauthorised site inspection visit, led by the Thai Army Intelligence Chief within Cambodian territory, which took place on February 2 in the O’Smach area, Oddar Meanchey province. “This site inspection was conducted without the consent…
The General Commissariat of National Police has ordered traffic police to resume the enforcement of traffic laws and fines, following a 160-day relaxation from July 25 to December 31, 2025, during the Cambodia-Thailand armed conflict. According to the secretariat, during this period of over five months, 34 additional accidents were recorded when compared with the same period in 2024, a 3% increase. Fatalities increased by 62, an increase of 10%; and injuries increased by 209, an increase equivalent to 15%. The National Police stated that in January specifically, traffic accidents increased by 42 cases (19%), fatalities increased by 25 people…
A South Korean opposition party member has stated that South Korean President Lee Jae-myung should have written a recently deleted warning to scam gangs in Chinese, not Khmer. The new South Korean ambassador to Cambodia joined the discussion, saying that Lee wrote in Khmer because the criminal groups do not speak English or Korean. The message by Lee — “If you dare to touch Koreans, you will be ruined… This is not a playful threat! South Korea, if it says it will do something, will do it to the end!” was subsequently deleted, but continues to affect Cambodia’s reputation, with…
Despite Thai artillery shells landing in her neighbouring village, 69-year-old Van Noeun stubbornly refused to abandon her home, even as many other villagers fled, leaving the village nearly empty during the fighting last December. She did not leave because she felt she could seek safety alone while “abandoning” her four sons, who were fighting against Thai soldiers on the front lines in Oddar Meanchey province. Additionally, she believed the Thai soldiers would probably not fire upon her location. “The shells seemed to land far away from our village; I told my daughter it is only when we hear the sound…
The Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts has lodged a strong protest with the Thai Ministry of Culture regarding various activities carried out by Thai authorities in the areas of Tamone and Ta Krabei temples. In a February 3 press release, the ministry reiterated that the locations of both temples fall entirely within Cambodia’s sovereignty, as clearly defined by the Franco-Siamese Treaties of 1904 and 1907, as well as maps that are officially recognised and remain valid under international law. The ministry expressed grave concern regarding reports of severe damage and the near total destruction of Ta Krabei temple, a…
Thailand, having illegally occupied parts of Cambodian territory, appears to be shifting the narrative by drawing attention to its original claims of combatting scam on Cambodian sovereign territory. They are doing this by taking FBI officials and military attaches from 20 countries on an inspection tour of alleged scam centre in O Smach, Oddar Meanchey province, according to senior government officials and analysts. On February 2, the Thai army took the FBI officials and attachés to the O Smach border area inside Cambodia, where alleged scam centres were present. This Cambodian territory is currently under Thai military occupation, following concentrated…
The fishing cat (Prionailurus viverrinus), one of Asia’s rarest small wild cats, has been confirmed for the first time in the restored flooded forests of Pursat province, around the Tonle Sap Lake, through 46 photos captured by camera traps in mid-2025. “This is a significant discovery confirming the positive results of more than a decade of management efforts, through close cooperation between the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and the Ministry of Environment, as technical advisors to Conservation International (CI)”, said a joint press release issued today, February 2. Vanessa Herranz Muñoz, director of the Fishing Cat Ecological Enterprise…
The Ministry of Commerce-implemented Accelerating Inclusive Markets for Smallholders (AIMS) Project has recorded strong quarterly progress in gender inclusion, investment mobilisation and market integration, reinforcing the role of rural women and rural smallholders as engines of inclusive growth. AIMS, supported by the government and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), has now reached 94,499 rural households across 18 provinces, exceeding its original outreach target ahead of schedule. More than 60 per cent of the beneficiaries are women, noted the ministry. The number surpassed the project’s gender target and highlighting their growing role as producers, entrepreneurs and investors in priority…