Summary of Press Briefing
by the Acting Director-General of the Department of Information and MFA Deputy Spokesperson
on 22 June 2026 at 15.00 hrs.
MFA Press Conference Room

1. Thailand’s Response to the Notification of Conciliation on the maritime boundary dispute under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)

• On 19 June 2026, Thailand submitted its Response to Cambodia’s Notification of Conciliation on the maritime boundary dispute under UNCLOS, which Cambodia transmitted to Thailand on 2 June 2026. This was an official acceptance to enter into the said proceedings.
• There are three main points to summarize from the letter:
• First, Thailand reaffirmed that its objective in this process is limited solely to the delimitation of the maritime boundary under UNCLOS.
• Second, the letter contained the notification of the appointment of Thailand’s 2 Agents: (1) H.E. Mr. Sihasak Phuangketkeow, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, as Agent and (2) H.E. Mr. Songchai Chaipatiyut, Ambassador of Thailand to Kuwait and the former Deputy Director-General of the Department of Treaties and Legal Affairs, as Deputy Agent.
• Third, the letter contained the notification of the two conciliators appointed by Thailand: (1) Judge Albert J. Hoffmann of South Africa and (2) Judge Rüdiger Wolfrum of Germany.
• Both are internationally recognized experts in the law of the sea and highly respected figures in the field of international law.

2. Conciliation Proceedings

• Within the next 30 days following Thailand’s Response, the four appointed conciliators will have to select a fifth conciliator to serve as Chair of the Conciliation Commission.
• The process thereafter is expected to take approximately 12 months (unless both sides view it necessary to expand the time needed) for the Conciliation Commission to issue a report containing recommendations.
• The report is not legally binding but may serve as a basis for the two parties to negotiate further to reach a mutually acceptable agreement. The proceedings will essentially aim for an amicable solution.
• This ultimately returns the two countries to the approach that Thailand has advocated from the outset, namely, a settlement of the dispute through bilateral negotiations.

3. Other Salient Points

• Conciliation is not a court process, and conciliators are not lawyers for either party. Conciliators are independent experts with recognized expertise and credibility. In addition to gaining a good understanding of the context of the dispute, they are to information from all sides in a neutral manner in order to help find a balanced way forward. Therefore, the outcome is not a judgment and is not legally binding but rather a set of mutually acceptable recommendations.
• As a responsible member of the international community that upholds international law and the rules-based international order, Thailand has decided to enter into the conciliation proceedings, constituting the fulfillment of its obligations under UNCLOS.
• Thailand is fully prepared, and officials will carry out duties with the utmost professionalism in protecting Thai sovereignty and interests to resolve the maritime boundary dispute peacefully and in accordance with international law.
• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will keep the public informed of developments in the process in a transparent manner, noting also that this is only the second case of the conciliation proceedings – the first being Timor-Leste v. Australia – and therefore, there is a lot of interest in these proceedings.
• Thailand will participate in good faith and hopes that this conciliation process will help pave the way toward a peaceful and sustainable resolution of the maritime boundary between the two countries.

Watch the full session at: https://fb.watch/HUQOFSQk-u/?