TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet has formally requested the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to address what he described as “unprovoked military aggression” by Thailand along the Cambodia-Thailand border on Thursday, July 24, 2025.
In a letter to Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations and President of the Security Council for July 2025, Hun Manet outlined a series of alleged Thai armed attacks that began earlier that day.
He called on the Security Council to hold an emergency meeting to stop Thailand’s actions and requested that the letter be circulated as an official UNSC document.
The reported attacks targeted several areas in Cambodia, including the Ta Moan Thom Temple, Ta Krabei Temple, and the Mom Bei area in Preah Vihear and Oddar Meanchey provinces.
“Cambodia condemns in the strongest terms and expresses its profound indignation over the unprovoked and premeditated military aggression,” wrote Hun Manet, as quoted by Khmer Times.
The Cambodian leader said Thailand’s actions violate international law as well as the principles of the UN Charter and ASEAN. He stressed that Cambodian troops were compelled to respond in self-defense to protect the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The letter urged Thailand to halt hostilities, withdraw its forces to its own borders, and avoid further provocative acts.
Hun Manet also referenced historical agreements, including the 1904 French-Siamese Convention, the 1907 Treaty, and the 2000 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU-2000), as the legal basis for Cambodia’s claims. He accused Thailand of unilaterally redrawing border maps in violation of these accords and using them to support recent landmine allegations.
“It is profoundly reprehensible that this act of aggression occurs while Cambodia is actively pursuing peaceful and impartial legal avenues to resolve outstanding border issues,” Hun Manet emphasized.
He also recalled that on June 2, 2025, Cambodia decided to bring four disputed border sites—Mom Bei, Ta Moan Thom Temple, Ta Moan Touch Temple, and Ta Krabey Temple—before the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
Despite this move, Hun Manet said Thailand has continued to escalate tensions and ignored regional and international appeals for restraint, including during the Joint Border Commission (JBC) meeting initiated by Cambodia on June 14 and 15.
On the same day, CNA reported that a Thai F-16 fighter jet struck several targets inside Cambodia. The attack came amid rising tensions from prolonged disputes that have resulted in deadly clashes, including the deaths of at least two civilians.
Out of six F-16 jets prepared by Thailand for deployment along the disputed border, one launched an airstrike that destroyed a military target in Cambodia, according to the Thai military.
Both countries blamed each other for initiating the clashes early Thursday.
“We have used air power against military targets as planned,” said Thai Army Deputy Spokesperson Richa Suksuwanon. Thailand also closed all border crossings with Cambodia.
Clashes reportedly erupted near the Ta Moan Thom Temple along the eastern border, approximately 360 kilometers from Bangkok.
Thailand and Cambodia have long contested several areas along their 817-kilometer shared land border, which remains largely undefined. The dispute has led to repeated skirmishes over the years, including artillery exchanges in 2011 that resulted in multiple deaths.
The current flare-up follows a brief firefight in May, during which a Cambodian soldier was killed. That incident triggered a diplomatic crisis that has now escalated into open armed conflict.
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