Bangkok Talks Peace in Beijing While Digging Trenches on Cambodian Soil, ASEAN Observers Find

Phnom Penh, November 6, 2026: Thai troops have moved their observation post and pushed trenches forward on Cambodian territory, even as Thailand's foreign minister sat in Beijing pledging regional peace, ASEAN observers have found.

The Observer Team, facilitated by the Cambodian Liaison Group, made the discovery at 9:20 am on Thursday at CH1 Checkpoint in Thma Da commune, Veal Veng district, Pursat province. The troops had advanced approximately 20 metres from their previous position.

Hours earlier the same morning, the team visited Stung Metuk Bridge in the same commune, a civilian crossing several dozen kilometres from the border that was destroyed outright by a Royal Thai Air Force aerial attack on Dec. 13, 2025.

It was the third such finding this week. On Tuesday, observers saw two Thai tanks deployed roughly 250 metres from their observation point at Chok Chey village in Banteay Meanchey province. Since the ceasefire took effect on Dec. 27, 2025, Thai forces have continued positioning shipping containers, stringing barbed wire, excavating trenches, building bunkers and destroying civilian property while maintaining their occupation of Cambodian land.


The human toll continues to climb. At Chok Chey village, 1,045 families—3,951 people including 1,155 children—cannot return home. At Boeung Trakuon, 1,869 families—7,873 people including 1,847 children—remain displaced.

The timing is awkward for Bangkok. Thailand's foreign minister was in Beijing this week for the Mekong-Lancang Cooperation meeting, where ministers reaffirmed their commitment to regional peace and stability—even as evidence of fresh violations accumulated on the ground.

Cambodia reiterated that it does not recognise any border alteration resulting from the use of force, and called on Thailand to honour the December 2025 Joint Statement and the October 2025 Joint Declaration in good faith. It also urged that the Observer Team's mandate be strengthened, so that Bangkok can no longer speak of peace at regional forums while undermining it at home.

Reported by The Khmer Daily Network