The Nation reported that on August 15, Major General Wanchana Sawasdee, Director of the Security missions coordination office under the Combat Department of the Royal Thai Armed Forces, made a proposal to President of the Cambodian Senate Hun Sen regarding the return of 18 Cambodian prisoners.
In a Facebook post, Mr. Wanchana proposed a plan: Thailand will return 18 prisoners, in exchange for Cambodia withdrawing all frontline forces from the border area with Thailand.
On the contrary, if a Thai soldier is arrested, even if it is just one person, Thailand is willing to trade their freedom in exchange for withdrawing troops. Mr. Wanchana said that if the Cambodian side agrees, it will be a sign of true concern; on the contrary, if they are silent or refuse, it is not necessary.
Thailand has not yet released 18 Cambodian prisoners because the two sides still maintain opposing forces at the border, posing a potential risk of a recurrent conflict. The Thai side believes that if released at this time, the prisoners can return to fight.
To reduce the risk, Thailand asked Cambodia to withdraw all front lines, ending armed confrontation. Five hours after Cambodia withdraws, Thailand will withdraw its forces.
On the morning of August 15, a group of temporary observers (IOT) consisting of representatives of 7 ASEAN countries, led by the Malaysian Defense attache in Cambodia, along with other permanent and concurrent defense attaches, inspected the An Ses border gate, Preah Vihear province. This is where the Cambodian side said that Thai soldiers had recently erected barbed wire fences, violating the ceasefire agreement.
The Khmer Times reported that during the reconnaissance trip, Thai soldiers continued to take photos and film observers near the Ta Um monument and An Ses market, two locations that were destroyed during the 5 days of fighting from July 24 to 29, 2025.
These developments came after a ceasefire agreement and a joint statement at the Thailand - Cambodia Joint Border Committee (GBC) Meeting signed on August 7, 2025 in Malaysia.
