AKP Phnom Penh, June 19, 2026 --

Cambodia informed the 36th Meeting of States Parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) of the reasons behind its decision to initiate compulsory conciliation proceedings under UNCLOS concerning maritime issues with Thailand.

Speaking at the meeting, H.E. Keo Chhea, Permanent Representative of Cambodia to the United Nations, stated that Cambodia’s decision followed Thailand’s unilateral termination of the 2001 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU 2001), which is the only bilateral legal framework previously used to address overlapping continental shelf claims between the two countries.

According to H.E. Keo Chhea, following the termination of the agreement, Cambodia considered compulsory conciliation under UNCLOS to be the remaining available legal mechanism.

In the "Right to Reply" to the Thai representative’s statement that Cambodia was not pursuing bilateral negotiations and was instead internationalising the bilateral dispute, H.E. Yaung Chansophea, Deputy Permanent Representative, replied that Thailand does not walk the talk as Thailand had given countless pretexts to reject Cambodia's call for bilateral negotiations under the framework of the MoUs.

On the contrary, he continued, Thailand unilaterally terminated the MoU 2001 and even used military force to violate Cambodia’s sovereignty.

H.E. Chansophea further stated that while Cambodia adheres to the peaceful resolution of disputes with all neighbouring countries, Cambodia has chosen this compulsory conciliation proceedings to ensure the protection and respect of Cambodia’s sovereignty and maritime rights.

The 36th Meeting of States Parties to UNCLOS was held from June 15-18, 2026, at United Nations Headquarters in New York, with participation from 171 States Parties and one regional organisation.

During the meeting, member states also elected judges to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS). The elected judges were from Ghana, Tunisia, Vietnam, India, Brazil, Russia, and the Netherlands.

By C. Nika