On the evening of the 17th, Cambodia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that Prime Minister Hun Manet had sent letters to Malaysian Prime Minister and ASEAN Chair Anwar, Chinese President Xi Jinping, US President Trump, French President Macron, UN Secretary-General Guterres, and other foreign leaders, stating that the Thai military plans to seize 17 territories in Cambodia's west and southwest by force. He called on the international community to pay close attention to the Thai military's unilateral provocations and urged Thailand to immediately stop all illegal actions, so as to jointly maintain regional peace and stability.
Hun Manet pointed out that the situation on the Cambodia-Thailand border has continued to escalate recently, with the area of conflict spreading from the original Preah Vihear and Oddar Meanchey provinces to a broader area, posing a serious threat to regional peace and stability. According to reliable sources, the Thai army intends to use force in an attempt to seize 17 Cambodian territories ranging from Pursat Province to Koh Kong Province.
He solemnly emphasized that this plan is completely unacceptable and seriously threatens regional peace and stability. Thailand’s unilateral action is based on its self-drawn 1:50,000 scale map, rather than the 1:200,000 scale map that has been mutually recognized by both parties. The latter was established as the border outcome by the 1904 and 1907 Franco-Siamese Treaties, demarcated by the Franco-Siamese Joint Boundary Commission, confirmed by the International Court of Justice, reaffirmed in the “Memorandum of Understanding on the Survey and Demarcation of the Land Boundary” signed by Cambodia and Thailand on June 14, 2000, and registered with the United Nations in 2011.
He stressed that if the Thai army unilaterally demarcates the border by force, it would not only violate the “Cambodia-Thailand Land Boundary Survey and Demarcation Memorandum of Understanding”, the mandate of the Cambodia-Thailand Joint Boundary Commission, and the recent commitments made at the meetings of the Cambodia-Thailand Joint Border Affairs Committee and Joint Boundary Commission to “avoid actions that could worsen tensions or expand disputes,” but also constitute an open infringement on Cambodia’s sovereignty.
He called on the ASEAN chair and all country leaders to support strict observance and implementation of the Cambodia-Thailand ceasefire agreement; to immediately stop all unilateral actions that might escalate the situation; to prohibit the use of force against civilians and property; to dismantle all obstacles set up in disputed areas; to stop forced expulsions and allow expelled Cambodian citizens to return home; to ensure that bilateral border mechanisms continue to operate in accordance with existing agreements and international law; and to unconditionally release and repatriate the 18 Cambodian soldiers detained by Thailand.