Thanathorn comments on Thai-Cambodian border tensions, warns against falling into traps

Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, Chairman of the Progressive Movement and former leader of the Future Forward Party, discussed the ongoing Thai-Cambodian border conflict during an interview on the “55 Years Nation Exclusive Talk: Breaking Through Thailand's Crisis” programme on Friday. The discussion was moderated by three editors-in-chief from Nation Group.

Thanathorn explained that Cambodia’s strategy was to gain an advantage on the global stage through international courts and bodies such as the United Nations General Assembly or the Security Council.

“What Cambodia wants is to provoke violence. The Thai government and military must remain patient and avoid falling into their trap. If we do fall into it and conflict arises, leading to casualties, Cambodia will gain legitimacy on the world stage,” he said.

Thanathorn emphasised that while he was not concerned about the backroom dealings behind the conflict, he was far more worried about the public-facing actions. He stressed that the key issue was how the situation could be resolved and return to normal. He recommended using the Joint Technical Committee (JTC) to facilitate negotiations for a swift resolution.

“Here lies the real concern for me. It’s not the behind-the-scenes issues, but the public-facing ones, where a tough stance is being taken to resolve domestic political problems. What the country needs is to de-escalate tensions and engage in dialogue, so that Cambodia doesn’t have an excuse to take this to the international stage, where we would be at a disadvantage,” Thanathorn remarked.

Thanathorn also expressed concern over the growing popularity of the military, which has gained momentum due to the current situation, calling it a disturbing development.

He described Thailand as a nation already diverse in ethnicity, where peaceful coexistence is key, and where war should never be the answer.

"My concern is how the current emotional and nationalist sentiments are being used to generate hatred in society. Once the seeds of hatred are sown, they can blossom into divisions between people, often fuelled by religion or ethnicity. This is detrimental to the ordinary people on both sides of the conflict. The ones planting these seeds and reaping the benefits of the resulting hatred sit in Phnom Penh and Bangkok, untouched by the consequences."

Thanathorn also criticised the initial response of the Thai government, which he felt was too slow. He stated bluntly, "The military should not be commenting on this matter, and must follow the civilian government’s lead.” He further argued that this situation reflected deeper political issues in Thailand, where the civilian government struggles to address military-related matters effectively.