Opinion: Laying Mines of Deceit: Thailand’s Cowardly Plot to Violate Cambodian Sovereignty

Opinion: Laying Mines of Deceit: Thailand’s Cowardly Plot to Violate Cambodian Sovereignty

Soldiers of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF) stand ready to defend the kingdom. Supplied

The Phnom Penh Post | When it comes to the Cambodia–Thailand border, truth has always been the first casualty of Thai ambition. The recent accusations by the Thai military — claiming that Cambodian-planted landmines injured their own soldiers in the disputed Mom Bei area — are not only baseless but dangerously deceptive. This is not an act of defence; it is a manufactured narrative. A cowardly operation designed to manipulate global opinion and justify illegal operations on Cambodian soil.

Let us call this what it is: a staged incident. A self-inflicted wound to build a pretext. A sinister tactic to provoke international sympathy and pave the way for so-called “humanitarian” demining missions — inside Cambodian territory, without permission and in violation of international norms.

A Dirty Playbook: Victimhood as Strategy

Thailand’s military knows full well how to play victim while acting as aggressor. This latest episode is textbook. Their soldiers were reportedly injured by a newly-laid mine — but curiously, the site of the explosion is described as a “barren field”, a clearing with no new vegetation. Any seasoned soldier knows that such terrain is a hallmark of recent mine-laying. In war, even a patch of disturbed grass or newly sprouted plant is enough to raise suspicion. But a clean clearing with no regrowth? That is no leftover from Cambodia’s civil war. That is fresh work — suspiciously fresh.

Either the Thai army has forgotten everything about battlefield detection, or they are playing dumb to hide something much darker: they planted the mine themselves. Either way, the truth is clear — this was not an accident. It was an operation.

Demining or Invasion?

Cambodia has long cooperated with international demining efforts, in full transparency and with respect for borders. But Thailand’s repeated use of “demining” as an excuse to enter disputed areas without consent is unacceptable. It is not demining; it is a disguised military operation. It is a trespass. A direct assault on Cambodia’s sovereignty. And it must be exposed for what it is.

This is not the first time Thailand has used such tactics. From using unilateral maps to redraw borders, to mobilising troops under the false flag of “protection”, Thailand continues to provoke and fabricate tensions. Their army acts like an occupying force, not a neighbour. And now, it appears, they are willing to maim their own soldiers or exploit their injuries for propaganda gains.

A Calculated Stunt—or Something Worse?

One must ask: did the Thai soldiers even step on a Cambodian mine? Or was it something even more grotesque — an orchestrated sacrifice? The question must be raised, as painful as it sounds. Because when a country stoops to using landmines as theatre, there is no moral floor left.

Let’s be honest: Thai soldiers are not naïve villagers who don’t know war. They know the signs of fresh mines. They know what disturbed earth looks like. They would never walk into a clearly suspicious area unless ordered — or used.

Are we to believe they all failed basic military training? Or are we witnessing a cowardly act of state-sponsored deception to cast Cambodia as villain?

Cambodia Will Not Be Framed

Prime Minister Hun Manet has made it crystal clear: Cambodia respects international law. We protect our sovereignty, but we do not provoke. And we do not plant new mines — especially not in areas under scrutiny or where civilians and soldiers are at risk. The very accusation is a disgraceful insult to our history of peacebuilding and international cooperation on mine clearance.

Thailand must stop this game. The international community must not fall for another orchestrated Thai melodrama.

The Thai military’s fake victimhood and dishonest tactics are not just an insult to Cambodia — they are a danger to regional peace. Let us not forget: the real victim here is truth. And truth demands justice.

Roth Santepheap is a geopolitical analyst based in Phnom Penh. The views and opinions expressed are his own.