Opinion: Stop the Lies: Thailand Must Choose Peace Over Propaganda

An Interim Observer Team (IOT) inspected the Preah Vihear Temple, scene of heavy Thai bombardment, on August 20. AKP

If Thailand sincerely wishes for de-escalation along the border, it must stop fabricating fake news, malinformation and disinformation against Cambodia. Recent coverage in The Nation Thailand shows once again how Bangkok prefers propaganda over truth, distortion over facts.

For decades, Cambodia has observed a consistent pattern: whenever tension rises, Thailand manufactures accusations against its neighbour. Sometimes it is a staged video of alleged Cambodian landmine planting. Sometimes it is manipulated photos. Other times, it is the recycled claim that Cambodia is deliberately provoking violence. These “traditional” accusations are not new — they are a well-worn strategy to smear Cambodia while distracting the world from Thailand’s own actions.

The reality tells a different story. Cambodia has borne the brunt of Thailand’s military aggression. The sacred Preah Vihear Temple has been damaged by 155mm artillery shells and cluster munitions. Cambodian villages along the border have suffered under MK-82 and MK-84 bombs — modern munitions manufactured long after the 1970s. These are verifiable facts. Instead of acknowledging its responsibility, Thailand tries to change the subject by shouting about landmines.

Cambodia has repeatedly warned Thailand, and the world, that remnants of past conflicts — including landmines from the 1970s — still remain buried in Cambodian soil. Any accidental detonations in these contested areas are tragic reminders of war, not acts of new aggression. Yet Thailand consistently ignores these warnings. Rather than admit the danger of its own cross-border shelling, Bangkok prefers to recycle the narrative that Cambodia is to blame.

This is not the behaviour of a state genuinely seeking peace. It is the behaviour of a government determined to manipulate public opinion while inflaming tensions on the ground. If Thailand truly wants de-escalation, it must stop the lies.

The international community is not blind. In today’s age of forensic technology, AI verification and open-source intelligence, fabricated evidence cannot withstand scrutiny. Thailand’s staged productions may fool domestic audiences, but they do not stand up to international examination. On the contrary, they erode Thailand’s credibility and reveal a troubling unwillingness to engage in truth-based diplomacy.

Peace requires honesty. It requires dialogue rooted in facts, not disinformation. Cambodia remains committed to stability and to resolving disputes through dialogue. But peace cannot be built on lies.

If The Nation Thailand and the Thai leadership truly wish to contribute to de-escalation, they must abandon the old habit of fabrications. They must recognise their responsibility for the heavy weapons already used against Cambodia. And they must stop weaponising propaganda as a substitute for diplomacy.

Cambodia continues to stand on the side of truth. It is time for Thailand to do the same.

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