The Thai military has reportedly violated the current ceasefire, firing mortar rounds and small arms at Cambodian positions in Preah Vihear province’s An Ses area, the scene of some of the fiercest fighting during the July 24-28 border clashes. Maly Socheata, spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defence, said the Thai military initiated the attacks late this morning, September 27. She announced that Thai forces opened fire at 11.52am, with Cambodian forces exercising restraint and refusing to respond to the provocation by returning fire. As of 1.30pm, she reported that Thai troops were continuing to fire. “Cambodian forces reaffirm their…
Author: Niem Chheng
Thai plans to build a 10-kilometre border wall in Sa Kaeo province, which border’s Cambodia’s Banteay Meanchey, have raised eyebrows. With an estimated budget of 87 million baht (over $2.6 Million), the public has been asked to contribute. The head of a prominent Cambodian think tank noted that the Thais can build anything they like, as long as it is on their own territory and not in disputed areas. Yang Peou, secretary general of the Royal Academy of Cambodia, told The Post that the cost and materials chosen are irrelevant to Cambodia. “How much they want to spend and how…
Prime Minister Hun Manet has reaffirmed Cambodia’s firm stance on resolving border issues peacefully, emphasising that “war cannot be resolved by war”. “Cambodia’s bitter experience with prolonged war has shown that conflicts cannot be ended through warfare; only peaceful negotiations can lead to solutions that foster peace, enabling displaced citizens to return to their homes,” he was quoted as saying in a press release on the outcome of a September 26 cabinet meeting. During the meeting, Manet addressed ongoing tensions at the Cambodia-Thailand border. He praised and thanked the armed forces and citizens for their brave efforts in defending Khmer…
Cambodia’s State Secretariat of Border Affairs (SSBA) has protested the latest reports released by the Thai military and various Thai media outlets which allege that Cambodian citizens are “invading” Thai territory. It expressed deep concerns about the claims, which suggest Cambodian incursions at 17 locations along the border, from Pursat to Koh Kong provinces. In a September 25 statement, the SSBA warned that the comments made by the spokesperson of the Royal Thai Navy and the Chanthaburi-Trat Border Defense Command constituted a threat to apply, by force, unilateral demarcation which violates the 2000 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU 2000). Such action,…
Maly Socheata, spokesperson for Cambodia’s Ministry of National Defence, has shared that Thai forces on the border fired several shots early this morning, September 25. Thai military and media outlets have accused Cambodia of provocative actions and violating the fragile ceasefire. In a press release this afternoon, Socheata noted that the social media page of the Royal Thai Army and several Thai media outlets reported that “Cambodia provoked throughout the night in the Second Military Region”, citing the sounds of gunfire and explosions, as well as approaches near razor wire barricades. It suggested that the shots were range-finding exercises. Socheata…
Satellite images purporting to show Cambodian incursions onto Thai territory are incorrect and misleading, according to the Ministry of National Defence. The images, widely shared by Thai media, feature unilaterally drawn border lines which are based on colonial-era border markers which have not all been ratified by both sides. The images have been used as official references for the Thai military and Sa Kaeo provincial administration as justification for punitive action against the villagers of Chouk Chey and Prey Chan villages in Banteay Meanchey provinces’ O Beichoan commune, in O’Chrouv district. The Thai authorities have claimed that the villages are…
Thailand has announced that it will not be attending the second meeting between the Cambodian National Police and their Thai counterparts, originally scheduled for September 26 in Cambodia. No new date has been confirmed. The first meeting between the national police of the neighbouring kingdoms took place on September 16 in Thailand’s Sa Kaeo province, with both sides agreeing that Cambodia would host the second meeting. The meeting was set to review a draft action plan for cooperation in combating cross-border crimes, including cyber fraud and human trafficking. The postponement was confirmed by General Seang Thearith, deputy chief of the…
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation has rejected Thai accusations that Cambodian villagers in Banteay Meanchey province’s Prey Chan encroached on Thai territory to stage protests, noting that the land remains formally undemarcated. Thai authorities have repeatedly called the area their own, using their territorial claims to justify the planned imposition of Thai domestic law on the villagers, who have lived peaceful y in Prey Chan for decades. In a September 23 statement, the ministry offered a precise explanation about the current agreed demarcation. Cambodians have been living and farming in Prey Chan for decades it said, predating…
Cambodia soldiers accidentally loosed two rounds from a firearm at 1.20pm today, according to Ministry of National Defence spokesperson Maly Socheata. She was responding to Thai media claims that the shots were deliberate and aimed at provoking a response from Thai forces. Socheata explained that the official social media page of the Thai military and several Thai media outlets accused Cambodian forces of firing three to five small calibre rounds into Thailand. “The ministry would like to highlight that Cambodian forces did not use weapons to fire into Thai territory as claimed above. According to information received from Military Region…
After long refraining from commenting on the border reopening issue, Senate president Hun Sen broke his silence, today, September 23, via social media. He firmly stated Cambodia’s position, saying that it will not beg Thailand to reopen the border, adding that “even if Thailand keeps it closed for another 100 years, it will not be a problem for Cambodia”. He said he did not want to discuss this matter while the Cambodia-Thailand conflict remains under a ceasefire, to ensure that soldiers and civilians are not killed or injured, and that public and private property, as well as infrastructure, are not…