Phnom Penh: The organizing team of the Cambodian People’s Party Youth Organization in East and Southeast Asia (ESEA) has declared its full support for the Royal Government’s resolution regarding the overlapping maritime claims with Thailand, using the forced conciliation mechanism under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
This declaration follows the unilateral withdrawal of the Thai side from the Memorandum of Understanding between Cambodia and Thailand (MOU-2001). Concerning the overlapping maritime claims in the Gulf of Thailand (referred to by the Thai side as MOU-4).
ESEA Support Provisions “We, as leaders and members of the ESEA Working Group, would like to express our full support for the Royal Government’s right decision to use the forced conciliation mechanism under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), a peaceful solution based on international law and genuine goodwill that will allow the Cambodian and Thai peoples to live together in peace and prosperity for a long time,” the ESEA Working Group said. The Memorandum of Understanding between Cambodia and Thailand (MOU-2001) has played a significant role in the only bilateral framework agreed upon by both parties in resolving maritime boundaries and disputed areas for over 25 years.
In addition, ESEA added that the entry into force of the Memorandum of Understanding has demonstrated the spirit of cooperation and goodwill between the two states, but the Thai side’s unilateral decision to withdraw from the Memorandum of Understanding It is a rejection of the only bilateral agreement that both parties have relied on and used in the past.
Please note that on the morning of June 2, 2026, His Excellency President Hun Sen, Prime Minister of Cambodia, sent a special message to the Cambodian people on the “Solution of the Royal Government Concerning the Overlapping Maritime Claims with Thailand Using the Forced Mediation Mechanism under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) Following the unilateral withdrawal of the Thai side from the Memorandum of Understanding between Cambodia and Thailand (MOU-2001) concerning overlapping maritime claims in the Gulf of Thailand (referred to by the Thai side as MOU-4).
