Thai marine task force accuses Cambodia of staging fake AOT visit and firecracker blast to smear Thailand

The Trat Marine Task Force has accused Cambodia of staging a fake incident to discredit Thailand, including deploying imposter ASEAN Observer Team (AOT) personnel and setting off firecrackers to claim Thai soldiers threw explosives across the border.

Captain Thammanun Wannana, commander of the Trat Marine Task Force, on Wednesday responded after Cambodia alleged that an AOT delegation visiting the area heard explosions from the Thai side, forcing them to abort their mission.

Thammanun said he was present at the scene because he was inspecting the area to secure demining operations at Ban Chamrak in Trat province. During the inspection, about 30 Cambodian personnel were seen gathering at their base, all wearing blue caps, prompting the Thai side to observe using binoculars and drone footage.

Shortly after, a loud bang was heard.

“It was clearly staged. They gathered people wearing blue caps at their base, set off firecrackers, and then claimed that Thai soldiers threw explosives,” he said.

He added that if it had been a real AOT delegation, they would have come directly to the Thai line to request access, as has always been done in past operations. Instead, the group remained 200 metres away, making identification difficult, and Cambodia spliced in old footage of genuine AOT visits to make the claim appear credible.

“Cambodia staged the scene, brought people disguised as AOT members, and set off firecrackers to create noise. This is a tactic used by insurgents — staging incidents to generate rumours and spread malicious falsehoods,” Thammanun said.