ASEAN Observers Witness Thai Tanks Near Chok Chey

Phnom Penh, November 3, 2026: ASEAN observers monitoring the Cambodia-Thailand border saw two Thai tanks deployed about 250 metres from their observation point at Chok Chey village in Banteay Meanchey province on Tuesday, as 1,045 Cambodian families remain unable to return home, the Ministry of National Defence said.

The Cambodian Liaison Group facilitated the ASEAN Observer Team in Cambodia (AOT-KH) in the mission at 9:54 am in O'Bei Choan commune, O'Chrov district, to monitor, verify and report on the border situation.

According to the ministry, since the ceasefire took effect on Dec. 27, 2025, the Thai military has continued deploying shipping containers, installing barbed wire, digging trenches, building bunkers and destroying infrastructure, homes and property of Cambodian civilians, while maintaining its unlawful occupation of Cambodian territory in the area. A total of 3,951 civilians from 1,045 families, including 1,155 children, remain displaced.

Photo: Ministry of National Defence
The ministry said the observers' on-site inspection gave them a firsthand view of the humanitarian impact on Cambodian civilians and underscored the urgent need to begin border demarcation through the Joint Boundary Commission, as stipulated in Point 4 of the Joint Statement of the Third Special Meeting of the General Border Committee of Dec. 27, 2025, so civilians can return home safely and with dignity.

Cambodia does not recognise any border alterations made through the use of force and reiterated its position based on the Indochina-Siam Boundary Commission's work, the principle of uti possidetis juris and the Franco-Siamese conventions, treaties, maps and procès-verbaux.

The Royal Government and the Ministry of National Defence reaffirmed their commitment to fully implement the Dec. 27, 2025 Joint Statement, the Oct. 26, 2025 Joint Declaration on the Peace Agreement and other relevant agreements to restore normalcy and lasting peace.

Source: Ministry of National Defence


Reported by The Khmer Daily Network