Cambodia Rejects Thai Claim of Halted Land Border Talks, Citing UNCLOS Scope

PHNOM PENH, July 21, 2026 (KPT) – Cambodia has firmly rejected assertions by Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow that the nation’s decision to pursue compulsory conciliation under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) has effectively ended negotiations on the two countries’ land border. In a statement released on July 20, Cambodia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared that Thailand’s assertion that the UNCLOS process had “closed the door” to land border talks was “simply not true.” The ministry stressed that maritime and land boundary disputes are governed by separate legal frameworks, with Cambodia’s recourse to UNCLOS applying solely to the maritime boundary. It explained that UNCLOS provides a peaceful, internationally recognized mechanism for resolving maritime disputes and should not affect discussions on the land border. Furthermore, it pointed out that there is no legal or practical reason to suspend the work of the Cambodia-Thailand Joint Boundary Commission (JBC), which was established under a 2000 memorandum of understanding (MoU) and reaffirmed in a December 2025 ceasefire agreement. Cambodia accused Thailand of unilaterally withdrawing from the agreed bilateral framework for maritime boundary negotiations, despite Phnom Penh’s requests for Bangkok to remain engaged. The statement noted that Thailand had previously indicated it could also rely on UNCLOS to address maritime issues, while now objecting to Cambodia’s decision to invoke the convention’s dispute settlement process. The ministry urged Thailand to resume land boundary demarcation through the JBC while allowing the maritime dispute to proceed separately under UNCLOS. Cambodia cited international support, including a July 11 resolution by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Francophonie, which backed Cambodia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and called for de-escalation. Cambodia stated that the international community expects Thailand to respect the International Court of Justice (ICJ) rulings on the Temple of Preah Vihear in 1962 and 2013, and to continue demarcation in line with the 1904 and 1907 treaties reaffirmed in the 2000 MoU. Cambodia accused Thailand of deliberately delaying the process to maintain what it described as an unlawful occupation of Cambodian territory, calling such actions violations of UN and ASEAN charters.