Thai PM's popularity tumbles to 9.2% amid Cambodia row
The poll, conducted by the National Institute of Development Administration, asked 2,500 people who they think is best suited to lead Thailand, with the country facing ongoing political turbulence. The results, published Sunday, show Paetongtarn's support has tumbled from 30.9 percent in the same survey back in March.
Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut of the opposition People's Party tops the latest poll with 31.48 percent, up from 25.8 percent in the previous survey.
Thousands of protesters rallied in Bangkok on Saturday calling for Paetongtarn's resignation. She's facing backlash over a leaked phone call with Cambodian Senate President Hun Sen. During their conversation about the border disputes, she seemed to disparage a Thai Army commander.
Earlier in June, a group of senators filed a petition with Thailand's Constitutional Court demanding the prime minister be removed from office. The court is expected to decide Tuesday whether to take up the case.
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The Diplomat
2 days ago
- The Diplomat
Thailand's Harsh Struggle With Cambodia
A Cambodian woman displaced by the recent border conflict with Thailand sits in a makeshift shelter at an unidentified location, July 27, 2025. As an outsider to a conflict, it's always difficult when the pressure from warring states is tugging away with righteous claims of being wronged. Both sides will blame the other, an easy option when justification is required for needless death and destruction. The latest Thai-Cambodian border conflict is no different. But when Bangkok continues to hold 18 Cambodian soldiers as prisoners of war, and starts ring-fencing Cambodian homes with barbed wire more than two weeks after a five-day conflict ended, then sympathies shift. Evidence mounting out of the Cambodian border province of Banteay Meanchey is compelling. Barbed wire, nets, barricades, and car tires have been used to fence off disputed areas, including homes where ordinary Cambodians live. It was also telling when Thai soldiers ceased the step-by-step encroachment and withdrew as foreign military observers began arriving as part of monitoring teams dispatched under the July 28 ceasefire agreement. Such maneuverings also parallel the military ambitions of Lt Gen. Boonsin Padklang, the head of Thailand's Second Army Region, who has vowed to recapture Prasat Ta Kwai (Prasat Ta Krabei in Khmer), one of three Angkorian temples at the center of the current dispute. The conflict has thrust Boonsin from obscurity onto the Thai national stage with his tough talk and unilateral actions, which include the closure of another temple, Ta Moan Thom, while its fate is being considered. Boonsin is expected to retire from the military at the end of September and he has not ruled out a political career. Suspended Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra had already described him as an 'opponent' in her now infamously leaked private phone conversation with Hun Sen. As Hun Sen, a former Cambodian prime minister who transferred power to his son Hun Manet two years ago, made clear, the decisions of politicians in Thailand seem to be dictated by their generals in the field, and over recent decades, the latter have built an intense dislike of the Shinawatra family dynasty. Paetongtarn's father Thaksin and her aunt Yingluck were both ousted by military coups, in 2006 and 2014, and she may well have been next had it not been for the support of army chief, Gen. Pana Klaewplaudthuk, who offered public guarantees that democracy would be respected. But the clout of the Thai military does make it harder on the Cambodians when seeking a diplomatic and political solution to a conflict rooted in French colonial maps, drawn up about 120 years ago. Thai military bullying at home might also explain why the Cambodian POWs have not been released, more so given that their capture, by most accounts, occurred while shaking hands with their Thai counterparts after a truce was announced. That should be a simple order to be issued by the acting prime minister, Phumtham Wechayachai, who has been keen to please Boonsin's command, offering the Second Army Area all the required funding needed for essential military operations. That came after the Second Army Area called for public donations on its Facebook page, including an odd request for razor wire to reinforce the border against Cambodian incursions. 'I have told the commanders-in-chief of the three armed forces that if their units lack anything, they must inform the government, and it will be provided from the central budget,' Phumtham said. As for the 18 POWs, increasingly they seem to be held hostage despite visits by the International Committee of the Red Cross amid Thai accusations that Cambodia had breached the ceasefire by laying landmines, a charge that Phnom Penh robustly denied. Maj. Gen. Winthai Suwaree, spokesman for the Royal Thai Army, even suggested 'Cambodia might not fully understand international protocols,' and in response to demands for the release of the Khmer soldiers, he deflected. 'We urge Cambodia to fully respect the ceasefire agreement and adhere to all 13 points, and to strictly abide by international legal principles. Cambodia has repeatedly violated these agreements in the past,' he said. Combatants on both sides of any conflict want to be seen as the good guys, not the bad guys, but in regards to the handling of Cambodian POWs and further land encroachment along the border, the Thais might want to think again, if they are to maintain what goodwill they may have left.
Japan Times
2 days ago
- Japan Times
China urges Thailand and Cambodia reconciliation in three-way talks
China expressed support for Thailand and Cambodia in resolving their border dispute on Thursday and offered to provide assistance based on the wishes of both nations, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said. Wang said China supports the Southeast Asian countries in strengthening dialogue and eliminating misunderstandings, adding he hoped they would rebuild mutual trust and restore friendship, according to statements from his ministry. He met his Thai and Cambodian counterparts separately during the day but also convened a three-way conversation on the sidelines of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Foreign Ministers' Meeting in China's southwestern Yunnan province, readouts of the three meetings showed. In their "friendly and candid communication", Wang said China hoped that the two countries could reopen border crossings as soon as possible, a Chinese foreign ministry statement said. China also promised support and assistance for land mine clearance in the border areas of Cambodia and Thailand, and the three ministers agreed to continue communication in a "flexible manner", the Chinese statement added. Thailand and Cambodia have wrangled for decades over border territory and a border conflict erupted last month after the killing of a Cambodian soldier in a skirmish late in May. It was the worst fighting in more than a decade and only eased after a ceasefire was struck in late July. In a bilateral meeting with Thailand's Maris, Wang spoke about China's readiness to accelerate a China-Thailand railway construction project, encourage more investments from Chinese enterprises in Thailand and ensure the stability of the regional production and supply chain. It is hoped that Thailand will provide more policy support and facilitation for Chinese enterprises, he told his Thai counterpart. While meeting with Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn, Wang sounded support for Cambodia maintaining political stability, and said China is appreciative of the country's crackdown on online gambling and wire fraud. He also expressed hopes that Cambodia will continue strong measures for joint efforts in the region against cross-border criminal activities.
The Diplomat
3 days ago
- The Diplomat
The Hidden Impact of the Thailand-Cambodia Border Conflict
Amidst the elite family intrigue and international implications of the Thailand-Cambodia border conflict, the real story risks being lost. That story concerns neither Paetongtarn Shinawatra and Hun Sen, nor colonial border demarcation, nor international court rulings; instead, it is about the innocent lives lost and the indigent rural communities on both sides of the border who have been driven further into debt and desperation. On a recent trip to Surin and Sisaket provinces in Thailand, I witnessed and documented the impact of the conflict. At a convenience store in Sisaket that had been hit by a Cambodian rocket, for example, survivors told me it took two nights before they could recover all the bodies, fearing the presence of unexploded ordnance. Even though I had seen photographs and videos of war beforehand, nothing could truly prepare me for the heartbreak of standing in that space. A place that should have been bustling with shoppers was now completely silent. Outside the convenience store, shattered glass lay scattered in every direction. Burned fragments of debris were strewn across the ground. A gaping hole in the ceiling allowed daylight to pour into the store, illuminating its charred remains. The smell of smoke still lingered, even though fire hoses and rain had washed much of the dust and ash away. Unfamiliar, haunting details stood out: a packet of peanuts, its plastic wrapper melted onto a twisted metal hook; fridge doors blown wide open, every glass pane shattered. The scene spoke volumes about the devastating power of the weapon used. Many of the locals in Surin and Sisaket that I spoke with still remember the border-related violence that broke out in 2011. They said this year's conflict is the most serious escalation since then. Not just because of the weapons used, but because of what was lost. In addition to hitting military outposts, rockets also struck homes, farms, shops, and even a hospital. Many civilians have lost their lives from or because of the conflict, including a 65-year-old man, who took his own life, reportedly after being prevented from returning to his home along the border. Just a day after a barrage of Cambodian rocket and artillery fire landed in four Thai border provinces, I spoke with a Thai rubber plantation farmer in a shelter for displaced people in Surin. With tears falling down her face, she told me: I have 30 chickens, so my husband decided not to come to the shelter. …I still call him to check if he's eaten and ask how the situation is. … Because we've had to flee like this, villagers can't tap rubber and sell it. It's affected our income. We're grateful for the support we receive here [at the shelter], but can we really sleep peacefully at night? I worry about home. This kind of testimony does not fit neatly into military briefings or diplomatic cables, but it is how war manifests for those in the firing line. Although I wasn't able to talk with people on the Cambodian side, I can only imagine their hardships mirror what Thai survivors are going through. On Thailand's western border with Myanmar, where I am currently living, people are suffering the long-term impacts of a different war. Refugees fleeing decades of internal armed conflict in Myanmar are still stuck in limbo. They cannot return home to Myanmar, and now, with the wholesale withdrawal of American aid, they cannot even rely on the minimal assistance they once had. As of July 31, the Border Consortium, one of the few remaining lifelines for displaced people in the region, discontinued its support to all but the most vulnerable refugees in nine border refugee camps due to funding shortfalls. Many organizations have been working tirelessly to address the shortfalls, but without the political will, it remains nearly impossible to offer these communities a real way out. Communities living on Thailand's borders must not be allowed to fall through the social safety net that, in many ways, marks this nation out as a leader in the region. On the Cambodia border, a ceasefire is not enough. The two nations must not only end hostilities and resolve the territorial dispute, but also begin a real recovery process that centers the voices of those affected. This should include government-backed conflict insurance, compensation, and access to mental health support. We are not talking about the symbolic or procedural compensation under the law, but reparations and support that allow them to rebuild their lives and return to normalcy with dignity. Along the Myanmar border, hundreds of thousands of people displaced by decades of war and repression continue to live without security or stability, made worse by the recent funding cuts. Thailand must provide them with legal status and sustainable livelihood, by promoting local integration that allows them to stand strong and self-reliant. True peace and freedom within a federal, democratic Myanmar must remain the ultimate goal. We must invest not only in border security, but in rebuilding trust, restoring livelihoods, and returning dignity to people who have lived under the shadow of war for far too long – on both borders. It is the lasting traces of war, the ones that remain long after the gunfire stops, that we too often leave unspoken.
