Thailand repatriates 18 detained Cambodian soldiers under ASEAN and Geneva Convention frameworks, marking a goodwill gesture to reinforce the fragile ceasefire. (Thailand Government Public Relations)
Cambodia and Thailand reaffirmed their decision to the truce agreement and adherence to the Joint Statement of the Third Special General Border Committee (GBC) on April 27.
The announcement came during the break session of the 25th ASEAN-EU Ministerial Meeting, where Prak Sokhonn, the Deputy Prime Minister of Cambodia and Sihasak Phuangketkeow, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, met to discuss normalisation efforts. Both sides prioritised confidence-building measures (CBMs) to reduce tensions along the border.
Sokhonn emphasised the need to return to the mechanism grounded in international law and the ASEAN Charter, with the aim to establish a sustainable peace between the two countries.
Prior to this development, the frontline military commands—responsible for the northern stretch of the Thailand-Cambodia border—had already engaged in talks. Thai Army Area 2 and Cambodian Military Region 4 met at the Secretariat of the Cambodia-Thailand Regional Border Committee (RBC) to discuss further implementation of the third GBC joint statement, which was enforced on December 27, 2025, and contains 16 key provisions aimed at preventing further friction along the disputed border. Brigadier General Nith Narong, head of Cambodia’s RBC Secretariat, led the Cambodian delegation, while Major General Kampanat Waphansu, chief of Thailand’s RBC Secretariat, led the Thai side.
At the same time, Thailand has also considered scrapping the 2001 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) 44 regarding the Overlapping Claims Area (OCA), signalling a significant shift towards adopting the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) as the governing framework for territorial disputes.
Despite diplomatic efforts, tensions remain high. During an April 20–24 session of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), the Deputy Secretary-General of the Cambodian Development Cooperation Board (CDCB), Chou Heng, condemned Thailand’s continuous raid into its territory.
As a response, Cherdchai Chaivaivid, Thai Ambassador to the UN, reiterated Bangkok’s commitment to peace efforts and development, while accusing Phnom Penh of launching “unprovoked and indiscriminate armed attacks on Thai territory.” Moreover, he added that Cambodia has become an epicentre for scam networks within its borders, a claim Phnom Penh dismissed as a pretext for further incursion.
Thailand and Cambodia engaged in a deadly conflict along their 800-kilometre shared border, resulting in at least 101 deaths and the displacement of over one million civilians. To date, while the ceasefire agreement is developing, it remains fragile as micro-level friction continues to test its stability.
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