Cambodia and Thailand have upgraded their diplomatic ties to a “strategic partnership”, vowing closer ties, as well as increased trade volume and tourism connectivity. 

The announcement came as Prime Minister Hun Manet and his wife Pich Chanmony paid an official one-day visit to Thailand on February 7. The prime minister was accompanied by several senior ministers, as well as representatives of the Kingdom’s private sector.

Upon his arrival, he was welcomed by his Thai counterpart Srettha Thavisin. Notably, they became prime ministers of their respective countries on August 22, a unique coincidence. The two have met on several occasions since September.

“I am glad that Thai-Cambodian relations are at such a good level today. The official visit to Thailand by Prime Minister Hun Manet of the Kingdom of Cambodia, and his wife, along with more than 10 Cabinet ministers, demonstrates the importance and closeness that the two sides have to each other,” Srettha posted on X, formerly Twitter.

“The Cambodian prime minister and I pledge that we will develop this relationship even closer.

“[We] will develop and expand cooperation in all areas – especially economic development in the border areas – increase the volume of trade and investment, promote transportation connectivity and tourism, and strengthen people-to-people relations.

“This is all for the benefit of our Thai and Cambodian brothers and sisters,” he added.

A post on Manet’s social media announced that Cambodia and Thailand have upgraded their ties from a “partnership for peace and prosperity” to a “strategic partnership”. 

“Both sides spoke highly of existing bilateral cooperation and exchanged discussion on the expansion and strengthening of cooperation in the political, economic, defence, security, trade, investment, tourism, labour and energy sectors.

“In the framework of political and diplomatic relations, both sides agreed to lift their bilateral ties from an ‘enhanced partnership for peace and prosperity’ to a ‘strategic partnership’ to serve the mutual interests of both nations and peoples,” explained the post.

The two leaders also pledged to support each other in international forums, and vowed to step up the fight against transnational crimes and online scamming, while turning the shared borders of both kingdoms into places of peace and prosperity.

During the visit, Manet and his wife were also granted a royal audience by King Maha Vajiralongkorn. 

Manet also met with Wan Muhamad Noor Matha, speaker of the Thai House of Representatives, and Pornpetch Wichitcholchai, president of the Thai Senate, for talks.

In another X post, Srettha explained that he and Manet had agreed on a four-point agreement, including energy security. 

“We agreed to jointly explore hydrocarbon resources in the overlapping areas between the two countries, in order to strengthen energy security. On tourism, we will join hands in the ‘6 countries 1 destination’ campaign to promote tourism in the region and visits to our regional brothers and sisters,” he said.

“To address the cross-border PM2.5 air pollution issue, we will establish a joint working group to develop a clear plan of cooperation. I have also invited Cambodia to join the CLEAR Sky strategy, and work with Thailand, Laos and Myanmar,” he added.

The CLEAR Sky Strategy Initiative aims to develop a regional action plan to solve the problem of cross-border smoke and haze pollution, and the fine particulate matter (PM2.5) it brings with it. Small particles are considered a serious public health risk by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

During the visit, Manet and Srettha witnessed the signing of several memoranda of understanding (MoUs).

Cambodia’s National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM) signed an emergency response MoU with the Thai interior ministry, while an education, science and technology MoU was inked between the Ministry of Industry, Science, Technology and Innovation and Thailand’s Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation.

An MoU on the transit of goods was signed by the General Department of Customs and Excise of Cambodia (GDCE) and the Thai Customs General Department.

The Cambodia Chamber of Commerce (CCC) signed two MoUs, one with the Export-Import Bank of Thailand (EXIM Thailand), and one with the Chamber of Commerce and Board of Trade of Thailand.

Thailand is a popular destination for Cambodian migrant workers, with more than 1.2 million working there in mid-2023, predominantly in agriculture, according to the labour ministry.

Bilateral trade between the two kingdoms totalled $3.71 billion in 2023, a decrease of 17% from $4.47 billion year-on-year, as per the GDCE.