Cambodia says Thai troops continue placing wire, containers and flags in Prey Chan and Chok Chey

Local authorities said that on January 4, 2026, Thai troops continued laying barbed wire, placing shipping containers and planting national flags in Cambodia’s Prey Chan and Chok Chey villages, despite the immediate ceasefire agreed on December 27, 2025. The homes of about 700 families in Chok Chey had been enclosed by Thai troops, and residents still could not return to live there. Some, however, had entered to inspect their homes and retrieve belongings before returning to safety camps. Through its Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Cambodia expressed its strongest protest against what it described as Thai aggression. It stressed that the Thai military’s continued presence and occupation in some areas of Cambodian territory beyond the boundary line constituted continued unlawful occupation without a basis in international law. Cambodia said the Thai armed forces’ actions were wholly contrary to Thailand’s commitments to settle disputes peacefully under the July 28, 2025 ceasefire agreement; GBC meeting minutes dated August 7, September 10 and October 23, 2025; the Joint Declaration on Peace and Peaceful Settlement of Disputes signed on October 26, 2025; and the joint statement of the special GBC meeting dated December 27, 2025. Cambodia therefore demanded an immediate end to those actions and the removal of all military equipment from Cambodian territory. By: Nget Pisant