Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has announced his intention to nullify the 2000 and 2001 border agreements with Cambodia. He said his government would consult the Thai public first, while analysts argue such unilateral action is impossible under international law.
The Nation newspaper quoted Anutin on September 30 as saying his administration plans to hold a referendum on whether to scrap the two memoranda of understanding with Cambodia: the 2000 MOU on land demarcation and the 2001 MOU on overlapping maritime areas.
Political science expert In Sophal wrote on his Facebook account on September 29 that under the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, once two sovereign states sign and recognize an agreement, it remains valid unless it includes a termination clause. Neither the 2000 nor the 2001 MOUs contain such provisions.
He noted that while Thailand may declare unilaterally that it no longer recognizes the agreements, it would remain legally bound if Cambodia insisted on their continuation. In Sophal added that Cambodia could file a diplomatic protest with the United Nations or ASEAN, or even take the issue to the International Court of Justice.
The analyst warned that a unilateral withdrawal would damage Thailand’s credibility and international standing while straining bilateral ties further.
Opposition politicians in Cambodia have also repeatedly demanded that Prime Minister Hun Manet cancel the agreements, claiming they caused Cambodia to lose land and maritime territory to Thailand.
In Sophal countered that Cambodia cannot cancel the 2000 MOU, as it anchors Thailand to the 1904 and 1907 Franco-Siam treaties and obliges Bangkok to respect maps produced by the joint border commission in 1908. He argued that the agreement safeguards Cambodian sovereignty, particularly around the Preah Vihear temple.
He added that scrapping the 2000 MOU would be akin to voiding the Franco-Siam treaties themselves, leaving Cambodia without a legal basis for border negotiations. According to Sophal, Thailand’s intention to scrap the MOU stems from its reluctance to acknowledge the 1907 treaty, which it claims was made with France, not Cambodia.
If the MOU were annulled, he warned, Thailand could attempt to enforce its own unilateral maps and lay claim to Preah Vihear and other disputed areas along the border.
