Cambodia’s Ministry of National Defence says a second meeting of the secretariat of the Regional Border Committee between the Cambodian and Thai military regions has failed, further delaying broader Cambodia-Thai regional border talks.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, ministry spokesperson Maly Socheata said the meeting involved Cambodia’s Military Region 4 and Thailand’s Military Region 2. It was held at the Choam Sangam international border crossing in Anlong Veng district, Oddar Meanchey province, under observation by ASEAN observer teams from both countries.
According to the statement, the two sides agreed to return to their respective headquarters after failing to reach a shared position. Despite the setback, both parties said they would continue exchanging documents and holding discussions in an effort to reach an agreement before organising a signing ceremony and convening the full Cambodia-Thailand Regional Border Committee meeting.
The announcement follows an earlier failure involving Cambodia’s Military Region 5 and Thailand’s Military Region 1. On January 29, the ministry said that talks held from January 27 to January 29, 2026, were intended to prepare for a Regional Border Committee meeting on the final day, but that plan was cancelled after the two secretariats were unable to agree on any common points.
After that collapse, Cambodia’s border affairs secretariat said on January 31 that while Regional Border Committee talks remain stalled, the Cambodia-Thailand Joint Boundary Commission meeting has also been delayed by the Thai side, with no response so far.
While awaiting a special Joint Boundary Commission meeting, Cambodia has asked Thailand to continue installing temporary border markers between markers 42 and 47, and between markers 52 and 59. Phnom Penh has also proposed holding the 12th meeting of the bilateral Operations Group and the 5th meeting of the Joint Technical Subcommittee on the border during the second week of February 2026.
Commenting on the situation, Man Nat, head of the Cambodia Watchdog Council, told The Cambodia Daily that the Cambodian government should urgently take Thailand to the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court to resolve the border dispute. He also called for stronger international diplomacy to demand the withdrawal of Thai troops from Cambodian territory.
Man Nat said Cambodia’s current diplomatic posture is at its weakest, arguing that Phnom Penh has failed to bring sufficient international attention to what he described as Thai incursions, including during a recent closed-door ASEAN foreign ministers meeting in the Philippines.
