Cambodia begins withdrawal of heavy weapons under Phase 1 of RBC agreement

Cambodia has begun withdrawing its heavy artillery from the border areas of Preah Vihear and Oddar Meanchey provinces in accordance with the first phase of the Regional Border Committee (RBC) agreement jointly reached with Thailand.

According to the Army Military Force page, at 6pm on Friday (November 1) the Cambodian Ministry of Defence reported that Royal Cambodian Army troops had removed SH-1 155 mm self-propelled howitzers and Type 90 122 mm multiple rocket launchers from forward positions in Oddar Meanchey. The weapons are being transported back to their original bases as part of the Phase 1 plan to pull heavy weapons from disputed frontier zones.

The withdrawal operation is being carried out under the supervision and verification of the ASEAN Observer Team (AOT), which was jointly appointed by the two countries.

Cambodian outlet KPT English also reported that the redeployment of heavy weapons marks the first stage of a coordinated demilitarisation effort with the Thai Army along the Preah Vihear–Oddar Meanchey frontier.

Phase 1 of the joint withdrawal plan, approved by the RBC, formally began on November 1, 2025. It focuses primarily on Category A weapons, including multiple rocket launchers, which are being moved away from contested border zones to their respective bases under ASEAN observation.

Images from the scene showed convoys of SH-1 self-propelled howitzers, Type 90 rocket launchers, and BM-21 (also known as Type 81) systems—Chinese-made weapons once deployed by Cambodian forces near the border. The BM-21s were previously fired across into Thai territory in earlier clashes, resulting in several civilian deaths.