Cambodian Senate President Denies Pressuring Thailand to Reopen Border

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (Oct. 16, 2025) — Cambodian Senate President Samdech Techo Hun Sen has not softened his stance or requested Thailand to reopen a border checkpoint on Oct. 20, despite claims from a Thai defense official, a Senate spokesman said Thursday.

Chea Thyrith, spokesman for the Cambodian Senate, rejected a statement made earlier in the day by Surasan Kongsiri, spokesman for Thailand’s Ministry of Defense, who alleged that Hun Sen had urged Thailand to reopen the border.

“Cambodia’s position remains unchanged,” Thyrith said.

Samdech Techo previously addressed the issue in a Facebook post on Sept. 23, writing, “Since the Thai military unilaterally closed the border, Cambodia has never asked the Thai side to reopen the checkpoint.”

“We simply told the Thai side that since Thailand closed it, Thailand must open it. There is no need to negotiate with Cambodia. Cambodia will open afterward — at most, five hours later,” Hun Sen added.

He emphasized that Cambodia would not plead for the checkpoint to be reopened.
“Thailand can continue to close it even for 100 more years, and Cambodia will not perish,” Samdech Techo Hun Sen said.