AKP Phnom Penh, February 03, 2026 -- The Royal Government of Cambodia reaffirmed its "unwavering stance" on national sovereignty Tuesday, asserting that while it remains committed to a peaceful resolution of border disputes with Thailand, it will not trade territory for peace.

In a press briefing titled "Updates on the Cambodia-Thailand Border Situation," the Royal Government Spokesperson H.E. Pen Bona detailed the administration's dual-track strategy: maintaining firm diplomatic pressure while addressing the humanitarian needs of displaced civilians.

The briefing follows a Jan. 31 visit by Prime Minister Samdech Moha Borvor Thipadei Hun Manet to displaced families in Preah Vihear province. Addressing the residents, the Prime Minister emphasised that the current ceasefire does not signal a softening of Cambodia’s territorial claims.

"The demand for our territorial integrity continues across all fronts. The Royal Government has not abandoned its right to protect our land," Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet said, according to the spokesperson. "Signing a ceasefire is not a trade-off for ceding territory."

The Prime Minister noted that while legal and technical resolutions through international mechanisms can be slow, they offer the only path to "long-term peace for everyone."

The rhetoric comes amid intensified diplomatic activity. Cambodia has issued a series of formal protest notes via the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and the State Secretariat of Border Affairs, accusing Thailand of actions inconsistent with the Joint Statement signed on Dec. 27, 2025.

Speaking at the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Retreat in Cebu, Philippines, on Jan. 29, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister H.E. Prak Sokhonn warned that despite the ceasefire, Thailand’s certain activities violate sovereignty and risk undermining the fragile peace.

"Such actions are prone to escalating tensions and hindering efforts to restore normalcy," H.E. Prak Sokhonn told his ASEAN counterparts, calling for a resolution based on the principle of non-use of force.

The government spokesperson reaffirmed that Cambodia maintains an unwavering position in defending the Cambodia-Thailand international border as inherited from the Commission of Delimitation of the Boundary between Indo-China and Siam, in full respect of international law principles, the principle of intangibility of frontiers (Uti Possidetis Juris), the Franco-Siamese conventions and treaties, the maps, and the procès-verbaux of the Commission of the Abornement of the Boundary between Indo-China and Siam, as well as all relevant agreements and documents mutually agreed upon by both parties. Cambodia categorically rejects any alteration of the border resulting from the use of force. 

By K. Rithy Reak