Cambodia Voices Concern Over Reported Thai Suspension of Bilateral Agreement

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (Nov.11, 2025) — The Cambodian government on Tuesday expressed deep concern over reports that Thailand has suspended implementation of a recent bilateral agreement between the two countries.

In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation said the Royal Government of Cambodia was “gravely concerned” by media reports quoting Thai leadership as saying the Joint Declaration had been put on hold.

The declaration was signed by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin on Oct. 26 in Kuala Lumpur, in the presence of U.S. President Donald Trump and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who currently chairs ASEAN.

Thai media reports linked the suspension to a Nov. 10 landmine explosion in the Phnom Trop border area near Cambodia’s Preah Vihear temple, which injured three Thai soldiers. The incident was also cited as the reason for Thailand’s cancellation of a planned Nov. 12 release of 18 Cambodian soldiers detained in Thailand.

The Cambodian government “categorically denied” Thai allegations that new landmines had been laid along the border, calling the claims “unfounded.” It said many minefields in the area date back to Cambodia’s civil wars in the 1970s and 1980s and remain uncleared due to difficult terrain and the lack of full border demarcation.

Phnom Penh reaffirmed its commitment to the Joint Declaration, which it said had been widely welcomed by the international community.

“Cambodia, as a devoted advocate for and state party to the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, has never used any new landmines and will never do so,” the ministry said.