Thailand closes land border crossing to Cambodia as border dispute continues

Thailand and Cambodia are locked in an ongoing border dispute, with the country imposing restrictions on its citizens and tourists travelling to Cambodia.

The measures apply to vehicles and people entering Cambodia from land border checkpoints in several Thai provinces.

Foreign tourists are also banned from travelling from Thailand to Cambodian border towns for gambling, and will be restricted from travelling by land or by air to the Cambodian city of Siem Reap.

Relations between the two countries have hit their lowest point in more than a decade since armed clashes along the border killed a Cambodian soldier in May.

The Thai military said in a statement on Monday (June 23) that the new restrictions were “in line with the current security situation”.

The two countries have imposed punitive measures on each other since May. Products and services banned from import from Thailand include fruits, vegetables, electricity and the internet, and even Thai TV dramas and movies.

Thai authorities said the latest travel ban could be exempted at the discretion of checkpoint officials for humanitarian reasons, such as students or patients.

The Thai military said the restrictions would also help combat illegal scams in Cambodia.

On Monday, Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra pledged to crack down on scams in Cambodia, including suspending Cambodian security agencies from using the internet.

Thailand has previously imposed similar measures on neighboring Myanmar, where there is also an active scam network that has lured thousands of foreigners.

The dispute has plunged Paetongtarn’s government into a political crisis after a leaked recording of a phone call between her and Cambodia’s former leader Hun Sen.

In the call, Paetongtarn called Hun Sen “uncle” and asked him to ignore a Thai military commander who was “just trying to look cool.”

Paetongtarn defended her tone as a “negotiation technique,” but critics say she weakened the politically influential Thai military. A key coalition partner of her Pheu Thai party has since quit the coalition.

Tensions between the two countries date back more than a century to when the border was drawn after the French occupation of Cambodia.