AKP Phnom Penh, August 12, 2025 -- Under Secretary of State and Spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defence, H.E. Lt. Gen. Maly Socheata, this morning called on Thailand to honour a key provision on captured soldiers agreed at the recent Extraordinary General Border Committee (GBC) Meeting between Cambodia and Thailand, held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

She noted that both sides agreed to comply with international humanitarian law in the treatment of captured soldiers, including their living conditions, shelter, food, and medical care in case of injury. 

If one side wishes to bring in its own wounded soldiers or civilians who are not under the control of the other side for medical treatment, the receiving side may determine its response based on the capacity of its medical facilities, including available equipment, personnel, or medical ethics, on a case-by-case basis, she added. 

Captured soldiers, she stressed, shall be immediately released and repatriated after the cessation of active hostilities in accordance with Article 118 of the Third Geneva Convention of 1949 and Rule 128 (A) of the Customary International Humanitarian Law. 

Both sides also agreed to exchange information and facilitate the dignified and timely return of deceased individuals at an agreed location, in full respect of humanitarian principles and jurisdiction without crossing the border, and ensure that appropriate measures are taken to identify and manage the dead under sanitary and respectful conditions, thereby preventing the deceased from disappearing in death.

“In this spirit, Cambodia continues to call on Thailand to implement the above agreement and to return the 18 Cambodian soldiers who were detained after the ceasefire, which has been for 14 days now, so that they can reunite with their families who are anxiously waiting for their return day and night,” she underlined. 

At the same time, the spokesperson reaffirmed Cambodia’s unwavering commitment to fully respecting and implementing all terms of the ceasefire agreement, as well as the spirit and content reached at the Extraordinary GBC Meeting on Aug. 7, 2025. 

Regarding the general border situation, she said, from midnight to 6:00 a.m. today, the frontline along Preah Vihear and Oddar Meanchey provinces remained calm and stable, with Cambodian forces maintaining full vigilance in fulfilling their duties.

By Heng Panha