Cambodia Protests Thailand's Repeated Border Violations

The Cambodian government has issued a strong official protest against a series of repeated violations by Thailand of Cambodia's sovereignty and territorial integrity. According to the government's statement, on September 18, Thai armed forces, accompanied by Thai monks, engaged in land clearing activities in the Phnom Peng area of Anlong Veng district, Oddar Meanchey province, located between border pillars No. 2 and 3. Following this, they installed a Buddha statue. Cambodia views this as another instance of Thailand using constructions and religious symbols to reinforce its illegal occupation of Cambodian territory. The Cambodian government strongly condemned these actions, stating they are a clear violation of Cambodia's sovereignty and territorial integrity, as defined and demarcated by the 1:200,000 scale map produced by the Franco-Siamese Joint Boundary Commission, in accordance with the French-Siamese Convention of 1904 and the Treaty of 1907. The government further asserted that these actions also violate Article 5 of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Royal Government of Cambodia and the Royal Government of Thailand on Land Boundary Survey and Demarcation, signed on June 14, 2000, and Point 1 (Tension Reduction Measures) of the Joint Declaration of the 3rd Special Meeting of the General Border Committee (GBC) dated December 27, 2025. The Cambodian government reiterated that Cambodia absolutely does not recognize any unilateral territorial claims by Thailand, and the aforementioned actions do not affect Cambodia's legal rights or position regarding its international borders. Cambodia demands that Thailand immediately cease all such illegal activities and unilateral actions, and work towards de-escalating tensions, fostering mutual trust, and maintaining peace and good neighborly relations along the border between the two countries. Cambodia remains committed to resolving border issues with Thailand, as well as with all neighboring countries, through peaceful means in accordance with international law and existing bilateral agreements, while adhering to its principled stance that border lines must not be changed by force. Source: CEN Cambodia