Phnom Penh: The Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training has announced its full support for the special statement of His Excellency Hun Sen, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia, to resolve maritime claims peacefully and in accordance with international law. This is according to a petition of support from the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training.
The petition supporting the Ministry of Labor states: “Leaders and civil servants at all levels of the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training would like to express our solemn support for the mechanisms of the Royal Government of Cambodia and its unwavering commitment to using international law to build regional peace and good neighborly relations.”
This declaration of support was made on the morning of June 2, 2026, after the Prime Minister sent a special statement to the Cambodian people on the “Resolution of the Royal Government Regarding the Overlapping Maritime Claim with Thailand” using the forced mediation process 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. (MOU2001) concerning overlapping maritime claims in the Gulf of Thailand (referred to by the Thai side as MOU44).
Through the supporting petition, the Ministry of Labor stated that the Memorandum of Understanding between Cambodia and Thailand (MOU2001) has played an important role in the only bilateral framework agreed upon by both parties in resolving maritime boundaries and overlapping maritime claims for over 25 years.
The supporting petition by the Ministry of Labor states that: “The entry into force of this Memorandum of Understanding demonstrates the spirit of cooperation and goodwill between the two states. However, the Thai side’s unilateral decision to withdraw from the Memorandum of Understanding is a rejection of the only bilateral agreement that both parties have relied on and used.”
The same source added that the right decision of the Royal Government of Cambodia to use the forced conciliation mechanism under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is a peaceful settlement based on international law and genuine goodwill that will allow the Cambodian people as well as the people to live together in peace and happiness for a long time.
