On 28 January 2025, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in collaboration with the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and The Standard, co-organized a Roundtable Seminar on “OCA Thailand-Cambodia: Facts and Choices” at the Eastin Grand Hotel Phayathai, Bangkok. The Seminar started off with remarks from Mr. Chettaphan Maksamphan, Deputy Permanent Secretary for Foreign Affairs, and included distinguished speakers from diverse fields, such as the Thai Parliament, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, experts and practitioners on the issue. They shared background information and facts, exchanged views and addressed questions and concerns raised by the participants.

This Seminar’s objective was to provide the media and public, both Thai and international, with accurate information and a better understanding of the issue of the Overlapping Claims Area (OCA) to the Continental Shelf between Thailand and Cambodia. It also served as a platform for an exchange of views between relevant stakeholders on the government’s approach to addressing this issue. The participants were briefed on different aspects of the OCA issue, including background and details of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Royal Thai Government and the Royal Government of Cambodia regarding the Area of their Overlapping Maritime Claims to the Continental Shelf (2001 MOU), relevant international law of the sea, negotiation mechanisms, the governmental process, the role of the legislature and the implications for Thailand’s energy security.

Some salient points from the Seminar include:

• The establishment of internal mechanisms by the relevant Committees of the Parliament to further study and provide recommendations on the OCA issue;
• Thailand’s involvement since the early stage of the drafting process of international law of the sea, which led to the adoption of the 1958 Geneva Conventions on the Law of the Sea, and the successful negotiation to delimit maritime zones with 5 neighbouring countries, except with Cambodia which has yet to commence;
• The difference between sovereignty and sovereign rights over maritime zones, and the importance of the 2001 MOU for maritime delimitation with Cambodia, especially the adequate maritime zones for Koh Kut, Thailand, in accordance with international law;
• It is mentioned that the 2001 MOU may be interpreted as acknowledging the existence of maritime claims to the continental shelf of both Thailand and Cambodia, although without formal acceptance of such claims by either side, as well as the challenges related to negotiating concurrently, both maritime delimitation and joint development;
• Thailand’s energy challenges, particularly the steady decline of natural gas reserves and the absence of new resource discoveries since 2005, which makes the country more reliant on energy imports and raises electricity costs, while the 2001 MOU would provide a framework for negotiation with a view to concluding an agreement for the exploration of new natural gas fields, thus increasing energy reserves and stimulating investment and economy; and
• The importance of peaceful resolution of disputes through mutual agreement such as the 2001 MOU, which provides a negotiation framework on the OCA issue for Thailand and Cambodia.

The Ministry underlines its commitment to negotiating the OCA on the basis of Thai law and Thailand’s obligations under international law, in line with the public’s expectations and the Parliament’s approval, as it has consistently done in cases concerning other countries. All of this to be undertaken with the highest level of transparency and professionalism, based firmly on the best interest of the country and its people.

This Roundtable Seminar garnered widespread public interest, with over 100 attendees from government agencies, the Parliament, the media and academia, while also being open for public participation through Facebook Live. This activity is part of the Ministry’s Media Focus Group initiative, with a view to encouraging the participation of various sectors, including the media and academia, critical communication partners of the Ministry, to help drive key foreign policies, based on accurate information and understanding. The Ministry plans to organize similar activities in interactive formats to clarify any queries or misperceptions the public may have.