Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said in a post on his official Facebook page on Friday night that it was the first JBC meeting after a 12-year hiatus.
Cambodia-Thailand Joint Boundary Commission (JBC) meeting was held in the capital of Cambodia on Saturday to talk over border issues following a recent military clash.
The meeting was co-chaired by Lam Chea, minister in charge of Cambodia’s State Secretariat of Border Affairs, and Prasas Prasasvinitchai, a former Thai ambassador to Cambodia and border affairs advisor to Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Press members were allowed to take photos and videos of the meeting for a few minutes before being asked to leave the room, reports Xinhua news agency.
The meeting was convened after soldiers of both countries briefly exchanged gunfire at the Mom Bei area, or the Emerald Triangle, on May 28, resulting in the death of a Cambodian soldier.
Mom Bei, or the Emerald Triangle, is an area sharing the border among Cambodia, Thailand and Laos.
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said in a post on his official Facebook page on Friday night that it was the first JBC meeting after a 12-year hiatus.
He said that during the JBC meeting, Cambodia would invite Thailand to bring four disputed border areas, namely Mom Bei, Ta Moan Thom Temple, Ta Moan Tauch Temple, and Ta Krabei Temple, to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague.
“I would like to reconfirm to my compatriots that even if the Thai side refuses or remains silent, Cambodia will proceed it unilaterally,” Hun Manet said.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation will send an official letter to the ICJ on Sunday, June 15, 2025, regarding the disputes in these four areas,” he added.
Last week, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet has announced the establishment of a high-level documenting committee to build a strong case as the country has decided to take the ongoing border dispute with Thailand to the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
The high-level documenting committee will be in charge of taking the long-standing case to the ICJ, local media reported on Wednesday.
The Cambodian government on Tuesday stated that it has created the “Committee to Prepare Documents for Filing a Case with the International Court of Justice Regarding the Areas of Mom Bei, Ta Moan Thom Temple, Ta Moan Tauch Temple, and Ta Krabei Temple.”
According to a report by Cambodian newspaper Khmer Times, the committee Chaired by the country’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister Prak Sokhonn, “shall have the authority and competence to act on behalf of the Kingdom of Cambodia before the International Court of Justice.”
However, Thailand wanted the border issue to be resolved through bilateral mechanisms.
Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra confirmed that she held discussions with her Cambodian counterpart, Hun Manet, and his father, Senate President and former premier Hun Sen, as they agreed on a mutual commitment to resolve the dispute peacefully through dialogue.
“Our commitment to a peaceful approach has yielded positive results. Through sincere and transparent negotiation techniques, we were able to de-escalate the situation without the need for violent confrontation,” Thailand’s leading newspaper, Bangkok Post, quoted Paetongtarn as saying.
As Cambodia intends to take the matter to the ICJ, Paetongtarn Shinawatra stated that the Thai government upholds its stance of not accepting ICJ jurisdiction.
