Although Thai authorities have seemingly evaded the matter since the outbreak of border clashes in December, the Cambodian Secretariat of State for Border Affairs (SSBA) has requested that their Thai counterparts join them to plant provisional border markers. The February 23 request included an invitation for the Thais to cooperate in organising a Joint Boundary Commission (JBC) meeting in the second week of March. A February 24 SSBA press release explained that the diplomatic note requested that Joint Survey Teams (JSTs) from both sides be dispatched on any appropriate date in the first week of March, to continue provisional border…
Author: Niem Chheng
A prominent Cambodian analyst has described the remarks made by Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow during a recent interview with French broadcaster France 24 as “a series of lies aimed at misleading international public opinion”. Cambodia merely seeks to defend the truth, he insisted. During the interview, Sihasak was heavily pressed by the interviewer regarding reports that the Thai military is occupying Cambodian territory, as Prime Minister Hun Manet recently shared with the international media. In response, Sihasak noted that the ceasefire requires troops from both sides to remain in their current positions. However, he failed to mention that Thai…
His Majesty King Norodom Sihamoni has warned that recent attacks by the Thai military have created a severe burden for the government’s landmine and unexploded ordnance (UXO) efforts. He urged donor countries to continue supporting Cambodian demining work. In a Royal message, released to mark February 24, the 27th anniversary of National Mine Awareness Day, themed “Join Together for War Refugees and Safe Communities”, the King noted that Cambodia has endured decades of war, leaving an enormous quantity of landmines and explosive remnants of war (ERWs) scattered across the country. Landmines and UXOs have devastated physical infrastructure, hindered national development…
The South Korean ambassador to Cambodia has stated that a Khmer-language message posted to social media by South Korea’s president on January 30, was intended to highlight the successful cooperation between Korean and Cambodian law enforcement in effectively cracking down on online scam syndicates. The message, which was later deleted, sparked a wide range of interpretations at the time. During a February 23 interview with The Post, South Korean ambassador Kim Chang Yong noted that since South Korean and Cambodian law enforcement began joint operations in November 2025, they have carried out 12 raids on scam operations, resulting in the…
Prime Minister Hun Manet has warned that the threat from mines and explosive remnants of war (ERWs) remains substantial in Cambodia. He noted that the risks were further exacerbated by the Thai military’s violations of Cambodia’s sovereignty, such as the use of cluster bombs and artillery shells, which have destroyed homes, property and civilian infrastructure. In a statement released ahead of the 27th Mine Awareness Day, to be held on February 24, Manet stated that from 1992 to 2025, Cambodia cleared 3,541 square kilometres of land contaminated with mines and unexploded ordnance for productive use, the construction of civilian infrastructure…
Leng Kimleang, a 45-year-old mother, has described how her youngest son Khum Khim, 13, was killed by a Thai artillery round during the December fighting. She recalled that when fighting broke out near her home — in Kouk Prech village of Sophy commune, in Banteay Meanchey’s O’Chrov district — on December 8, she wanted to flee. Her eldest son was away, but her husband and youngest son, Khim, wanted to stay near their crops. The family took shelter in a small bunker that they prepared in July, during the first round of clashes, and listened to the sound of drones…
The Ministry of Interior has introduced a new online platform which allows members of the public to file complaints against civil servants or police officers who are guilty of misconduct or fail to fulfil their duties appropriately. The “Complaint Submission System (CSS)” website went live on February 19. According to the ministry, it aims “to facilitate and expedite the procedures for resolving and responding promptly to citizens — specifically regarding the resolution of complaints and denunciations involving the jurisdiction and conduct of Ministry of Interior officials — and to conduct investigations to ensure justice and integrity for all involved parties”.…
In just 15 days, from February 3 to February 18, Phnom Penh authorities conducted a sweep of 2,709 locations suspected of accommodating scammers. They discovered 21,104 foreigners, including 6,683 women. According to the Secretariat of the Commission for Combating Technology Crimes (CCTC), the locations inspected included buildings, condominiums, apartments, gated communities, guesthouses and hotels across all 14 districts of the capital. “During these 15 days, authorities also cracked down on 40 other crime locations, detaining 284 foreign nationals, including 31 women, from 13 nationalities: Vietnam, China, Myanmar, South Korea, Malaysia, Nepal, Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Philippines, Indonesia, Pakistan and Singapore,”…
Several officials from the Ministry of Interior’s Anti-Cybercrime Department have been disciplined after a complaint from a member of the public that they used disrespectful language with a scam victim who attempted to file a complaint about an illegal loan. The complainant told a Fresh News journalist that the officials had denigrated her for falling for a scam, “victim-blaming” her for her mistake. The department issued a public response to the complaint, reiterating that it frequently reminds its officers to maintain professional ethics when dealing with the public. The woman, who remains anonymous, told journalist Van Saray that she had…
A senior Cambodian official has informed foreign diplomats of Cambodia’s “absolute commitment” to sweeping away and eventually eliminating online scams, a type of transnational crime, from the country. Senior Minister Chhay Sinarith, chairman of the Secretariat of Commission for Combating Technology Crimes (CCTC), presented an update on the current campaign against technology-related crimes to 26 ambassadors and diplomatic representatives in Cambodia, as well as EU representatives, on February 18. He explained that the previous implementation of the fight against scam operations has been further intensified under the seventh mandate of the Royal Government, particularly through the establishment of the CBCHB,…