Thailand disputes UN rapporteur’s account of Cambodia conflict

Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has rejected claims that the country initiated the conflict with Cambodia and disputed figures cited by UN Special Rapporteur Tom Andrews. It also maintained that Thailand was prepared to rebuild bilateral relations if Cambodia demonstrated genuine cooperation.

Separately, the Joint Information Centre on the Thai–Cambodian Situation (JIC) warned that distorted or one-sided information could create international misunderstanding within minutes.

Thailand would continue to use verifiable facts and evidence to explain its position, while urging all parties to apply fair standards and consider information from all sides, the centre stated.

Thailand challenges UN rapporteur’s account

The Foreign Ministry issued a clarification on Saturday (August 1) following media coverage of Andrews’s end-of-mission statement after his official visit to Cambodia from July 20 to 31, 2026.

The ministry maintained that the conflict and its consequences had not been caused by Thailand. It attributed the escalation to what it described as indiscriminate attacks by the Cambodian side on civilian areas in Thailand.

Addressing Andrews’s reference to an alleged 650,000 internally displaced persons in Cambodia, the ministry argued that the figure included some Cambodians who had lived in areas that Thailand opened as temporary shelters in the late 1970s as part of its humanitarian assistance.

According to the statement, those individuals did not return to Cambodia after conditions improved, despite repeated formal protests lodged by Thailand with the Cambodian side. The ministry therefore classified them as people encroaching on Thai territory rather than internally displaced persons.

Thailand also argued that the right of return should not be exploited for political purposes or propaganda, but should be upheld alongside genuine humanitarian concerns and principles.

The Cambodian government had a responsibility to protect citizens displaced by conflict within its territory, particularly their right to life and safety, the statement noted. It should also ensure that those affected, especially vulnerable people, had access to adequate shelter, an adequate standard of living, food, clean water, sanitation and essential public health services.

The ministry also challenged Andrews’s figure of 900,000 Cambodian migrant workers returning from Thailand.

It explained that the returnees included both legally employed workers and people who had entered or worked in Thailand illegally. According to the statement, they returned voluntarily after the Cambodian government called on its citizens to come home.

The Thai government had consistently affirmed its commitment to ensuring the safety of Cambodian migrant workers in Thailand and had never adopted a policy of expelling them, the ministry added.

Thailand reaffirmed its commitment to promoting and protecting human rights and to respecting international humanitarian law. It noted that it had consistently cooperated with the special procedures of the UN Human Rights Council and had submitted relevant explanations, which had been officially recorded.

The ministry stated that this cooperation reflected Thailand’s commitment to transparency, accountability and the protection of human rights in accordance with its international obligations.

It also urged the UN Human Rights Council’s special procedures to uphold the principles of independence, impartiality and objectivity while relying on credible and verifiable sources.

Facts and perspectives from all sides should be considered comprehensively and fairly to ensure that human rights assessments remained balanced and consistent with the mandates of the special procedures, it argued.

Thailand remained ready to move forward and rebuild relations with Cambodia, but such efforts would require genuine and sincere cooperation from the Cambodian side.

Both countries should strictly implement the Joint Statement of December 27, 2025, reduce tensions and avoid actions or allegations that could provoke further friction, create misunderstanding or weaken mutual trust, the ministry stated.

Such an environment would pave the way for border security issues to be addressed peacefully through continued engagement under bilateral mechanisms, it concluded.

JIC warns distorted information can spread rapidly

ACM Prapas Sornchaidee, assistant commander-in-chief of the Royal Thai Air Force and director of the JIC, said the dispute extended beyond the military sphere into the international information arena.

Thailand would rely on facts and verifiable evidence to build understanding within the international community, while urging all parties to apply the same standards and consider information from all sides, he explained.

“The most dangerous thing today is not bullets, but distorted information,” Prapas remarked.

“One-sided information can create misunderstanding around the world within minutes, while establishing the facts may take several days. The JIC’s duty is therefore not to compete over who speaks the loudest, but to ensure that the facts are heard.”

Responding to claims that Thailand had repeatedly been portrayed as the party at fault, Prapas stressed that the country was not asking anyone to take its side.

“We ask only that the same standards be applied to every country,” he stated. “Before accusing anyone, the facts from all sides should be examined rather than information from only one side being accepted. Fairness begins with listening to all sides.”

Thailand would not counter false information with further misinformation, he added.

“We will use facts, documents, evidence, photographs and verifiable information,” Prapas explained. “The truth may travel more slowly, but once it arrives, it lasts longer than propaganda.”

Addressing the Thai public, he described every citizen as a potential communicator for the country and urged people to verify information before believing, sharing or forwarding it.

“A single fact-based post may create more understanding than hundreds of emotionally charged messages,” he noted. “Thailand is strong not because we speak the loudest, but because we stand on facts.”

Prapas also told the international community that Thailand was prepared to allow all parties to examine the evidence and remained willing to work through bilateral mechanisms and in accordance with international law.

“We remain committed to peace, but sustainable peace must be built on the truth, not information that has been selectively presented,” he stated. “The truth does not need to shout, but it must never stop being told.”

He argued that modern conflicts were decided not only on the battlefield but also in the information arena, where the side presenting its account first often gained an early advantage in shaping global perceptions.

Thailand could no longer allow others to tell its story on its behalf, he added, encouraging citizens to contribute to public diplomacy even if they were neither diplomats nor politicians.

Prapas acknowledged that Thailand might not have many global lobbying firms, but maintained that the country had about 70 million citizens who could help communicate the facts through posts, explanations and responsible sharing.

This collective effort represented a form of public communication that money could not buy, he argued.

“One-sided information must not be allowed to become the world’s accepted truth,” Prapas stated. “Thailand has the right to tell its own story through facts, evidence and reason.”

He encouraged people to begin by sharing one verified account, translating one piece of information or explaining one fact to another person. “One person, one voice, one fact, for Thailand,” he concluded.