Thank you, sir. Allow me just to quickly translate what General Nattapol Nakpanit, the Deputy Minister of Defense of Thailand, has mentioned regarding the result of the meeting — the GBC, the General Border Committee Thailand–Cambodia Extraordinary Session Meeting — this afternoon. So first, he said: “Members of the press, members of the Thai public watching at home. Today, I had the honor of co-chairing the extraordinary GBC meeting with His Excellency DSA, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense of Cambodia. This morning, I also had the honor of paying a courtesy call on His Excellency Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Prime Minister of Malaysia, which was also joined by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense of Cambodia. The discussion was held in a cordial and friendly atmosphere. The Malaysian Prime Minister welcomed the ceasefire and the positive progress made in this round of Thailand–Cambodia GBC discussions, viewing it as an important step toward the implementation of the ceasefire. The Malaysian Prime Minister clearly stated that he had already consulted with other states and leaders, and they were in agreement that resolving the Thai–Cambodian border issue should be in a bilateral manner between Thailand and Cambodia. This position is fully aligned with Thailand’s approach. Malaysia’s role will be to help facilitate dialogue between the two sides so that they can resolve the issue themselves, offering support as needed.


In addition, the Malaysian Prime Minister welcomed the consensus reached by Thailand and Cambodia during this GBC meeting on establishing an Interim Observer Team, to be led by the Malaysian Defense Attaché and composed solely of defense attachés from ASEAN member states. The United States and China will not take part, but have expressed their support in accordance with what Thailand and Cambodia deem appropriate. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Government and the Ministry of Defense of Malaysia, in its capacity as the Chair, for their coordination and facilitation in making this meeting proceed smoothly. The United States and China also attended this meeting as observers, as they did during the special meeting on the 28th of July, represented at the level of ambassador. This GBC meeting was convened to follow up on the issues discussed by the leaders of Thailand and Cambodia in Malaysia on the 28th of July, especially the ceasefire. I pointed out in the meeting that since midnight on the 28th of July, Thailand has fully complied with what was agreed upon by the leaders of both countries regarding the ceasefire. However, it was found that the Cambodian side had continued to violate the ceasefire after midnight on the 28th of July. The Thai side has exercised utmost restraint and responded only in self-defense, while the current situation along the border has become more stable. We know that the Cambodian side continues to deploy additional troops to the area and has operated unmanned aerial vehicles to conduct surveillance over the territory. These are provocative actions that could lead to misunderstandings. Moreover, there has been the dissemination of distorted information and disinformation, which is unconstructive and does not help create an atmosphere conducive to dialogue or rebuilding trust.


However, from the meeting, the Cambodian side at the policy level has shown their sincerity to the ceasefire agreement. The violations of the ceasefire mentioned prior may be arbitrary acts by military units in the area. My objective in participating in today’s meeting was to engage in a frank and sincere discussion with the Cambodian side to find a way forward for sustaining the ceasefire in the long term and to restore peace and stability to the Thai–Cambodian border. Our ultimate goal is to enable people on both sides of the border to return to their normal lives in peace and security.


Let me now summarize the key outcomes of today’s meeting. Mutual agreement of both sides: both sides reaffirm their commitment to a strict ceasefire, which covers all types of weapons and requires both to maintain their troops at positions held as of the date the ceasefire commenced, with no further reinforcement. Secondly, both agreed to establish an Interim Observer Team composed of defense attachés from ASEAN embassies in Thailand and Cambodia, led by the Malaysian Defense Attaché in the respective country. The observer team will conduct regular observations in the area without crossing the border and will coordinate closely with the respective RBC and GBC mechanisms in both countries to ensure no ceasefire violations by either party. Thirdly, both sides will refrain from any provocative actions, including military actions or the dissemination of disinformation, to foster an atmosphere conducive to peaceful dialogue. Fourthly, both sides will strictly adhere to international humanitarian law. In the immediate term, this includes the prompt and dignified repatriation of deceased personnel. As for prisoners of war, they will be repatriated immediately after the cessation of active hostilities, in accordance with the Third Geneva Convention. I affirm that our side has treated these individuals in full compliance with international humanitarian law. Fifthly, both sides will maintain open channels of communication and make use of existing bilateral mechanisms to prevent any incidents from escalating. Follow-up RBC meetings will be convened within 2 weeks to coordinate the implementation of today’s outcomes. Another GBC meeting will be held in 1 month to monitor progress.


I also raised 2 additional important issues. However, the Cambodian side suggested that today’s meeting focus mainly on the ceasefire and that these matters be discussed at the next GBC meeting. These matters include: first, mine-clearance cooperation. Landmines were a key factor that caused tensions and led to the use of force. Thailand stands ready to cooperate with Cambodia in clearing landmines in the areas of recent clashes and other affected areas along the border to ensure the safety of people on both sides. Secondly, cooperation on combating transnational crime, especially in tackling online scams, which have seriously impacted the Thai people and other countries across the region. I would like to emphasize that the outcomes we reach today can only be translated into tangible results with genuine cooperation and sincerity from both sides. Thailand remains committed to continuing our engagement in a sincere and constructive manner based on the principles of good neighborliness. I also hope that the Cambodian side would do the same. To this end, Thailand and Cambodia are neighbors that share a common border and cannot move away from each other. We are also members of the same ASEAN family. If both our countries can resolve this issue swiftly, peace will return to our shared border area, and our people will be able to resume their normal lives in peace once again.


So that’s a translation of what General Nattapol mentioned. Now we open the floor, ladies and gentlemen, for the Q&A. As I mentioned earlier, we only have limited time. So, I’d like to limit the number of questions to 2–3 questions, please.”


So, the question is asked: could you address your organization as well, please? From NHK Japan, right? So, the question was actually asked to General Nattapol with regard to the successful conclusion of the GBC, whether there’s any relevance to the conduct of the JBC, which is the Joint Boundary Commission, which is another level at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Was there any light shed on when that JBC will be organized? 


GBC and RBC are both bilateral mechanisms conducted by the military and the Ministry of Defense. For example, the GBC is at the ministerial level, co-chaired by the Ministers of Defense of both countries. Whereas RBC — which stands for the Regional Border Committee — is chaired or co-chaired by the Army Area Commanders in the respective areas of both countries. So these, as you can see, are the military- or Ministry of Defense–level meeting mechanisms. However, the JBC is at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs level, and they already held the recent meeting on the 14th of June. The next meeting was actually agreed upon by both sides to be conducted in September, and that still stands and is valid. We didn’t really discuss the issue or any concerns on the JBC at this GBC meeting. So that still stands as is.


Just a quick translation of the question from Khun Thapanee from the reporter agency: she asked a question not concerning the ceasefire agreement — whether there will be any follow-up mechanism in regard to this ceasefire agreement — and, concerning the RBC mechanism, whether they can help guarantee the safety of the people along the border area.






So, in answering those two questions: in fact, with regard to the follow-up on the ceasefire agreement that was made today — and actually on the 28th of July and reconfirmed by today’s meeting — today’s GBC meeting was actually co-chaired by the Ministers of Defense of both countries, and we have already signed an agreement together by both sides, Cambodia and Thailand. As part of the signing of the agreement, we agreed that we shall conduct an RBC in 2 weeks’ time — a Regional Border Committee meeting at the regional level — and that will be one of many mechanisms in following up the ceasefire agreement. And following that, another GBC meeting will be conducted in 1 month’s time. In any case, should a ceasefire be violated, then we might need to reconvene another GBC Extraordinary Session at any time, according to the situation. Regarding the safety of the population along the border areas, we have already coordinated and entrusted the local provincial governors of those provinces to monitor and to check whether the areas of the homes of the local population are safe for them to return to. However, my early concern here is that there are still unexploded ordnance — unexploded rockets and ordnance — found in the area, which are deemed unsafe for people to return home. So we are still worried about that, and we still need to have our authorities and the relevant agencies actually go in and diffuse and disarm those rockets and unexploded ordnance; once they are deemed appropriate and safe to return, then the local authorities will allow the villagers to return.




All right. So that’s it. Thank you so much, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you.