(Photo: Reuters)The cabinet has been instructed to start preparing to void a 25-year-old memorandum of understanding (MoU) used by Thailand and Cambodia as a framework to settle their overlapping maritime boundaries. Thailand and Cambodia signed the document, popularly known as MoU 44, in 2001 (2544 in the Buddhist calendar) to set the direction for negotiations to resolve overlapping territorial claims offshore. It came a year after the signing of another agreement, MoU 43, to be used in resolving contested land boundaries. The two countries hoped to use MoU 44 to pave the way to jointly develop offshore areas believed to be rich in natural gas, following the successful model used by Thailand and Malaysia. Critics have said MoU was made in haste, signed just 44 days after negotiations started, compared to seven years for a similar agreement with Malaysia.

Source: Bangkok Post February 11, 2026 04:38 UTC