logo
Cambodia to start military conscription next year, PM Hun Manet says

Cambodia to start military conscription next year, PM Hun Manet says

Euronews14-07-2025
Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Manet said on Monday that his country will implement military conscription starting next year, in an announcement that coincides with ongoing border tensions with Thailand.
Relations between the neighbours have deteriorated sharply following an armed confrontation on 28 May in which one Cambodian soldier was killed in one of several small contested patches of land.
The sides have agreed to de-escalate their dispute to avoid further clashes, but continue to implement or threaten measures that have kept tensions high, alongside exchanging sharp words.
The dispute has also roiled Thailand's domestic politics.
Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra was suspended from office at the beginning of July after making what critics saw as a disparaging comment about her country's military in a phone call to Cambodia's former Prime Minister Hun Sen, who leaked a recording of it.
Hun Manet, Hun Sen's son and successor, said that starting in 2026, an existing law on conscription would be implemented to fill shortages and upgrade the military's capabilities.
"This is our commitment," Hun Manet said in a speech to military forces in the northern province of Kampong Chhnang. He wore his military uniform displaying his rank of a four-star general.
Hun Manet said that soldiers joining the ranks through conscription were more effective than a voluntary force and at least as professional.
The conscription law was passed in 2006, but never activated. Cambodians of both sexes, aged 18 to 30, must serve but for women, service is voluntary.
Thailand has long implemented conscription for men reaching 20 years of age, with an annual lottery determining who among them is called up.
The CIA's World Factbook estimates Cambodia's armed forces total 200,000 personnel, including a large force of military police.
It says Thailand has 350,000 active-duty personnel in its armed forces.
Hun Manet also called for increasing the military budget. Cambodia is one of the region's poorer countries, with a $9.32 billion (€7.99 billion) national budget for 2025, out of which the biggest share, $739 million (€633 million), went on defence.
He also repeated calls for Thailand to reopen without conditions all border crossings it had closed in June, saying that Cambodia would reciprocate within hours.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Macrons file defamation suit against right-wing US podcaster
Macrons file defamation suit against right-wing US podcaster

Local France

time4 hours ago

  • Local France

Macrons file defamation suit against right-wing US podcaster

The 218-page complaint against Candace Owens, who has millions of followers on X and YouTube, was filed by the Macrons in Delaware Superior Court and seeks a jury trial and unspecified punitive damages. In a statement released by their lawyer, the Macrons said they filed the lawsuit after Owens repeatedly ignored requests to retract false and defamatory statements made on an eight-part YouTube and podcast series called "Becoming Brigitte." "Owens' campaign of defamation was plainly designed to harass and cause pain to us and our families and to garner attention and notoriety," they said. Advertisement "We gave her every opportunity to back away from these claims, but she refused. "It is our earnest hope that this lawsuit will set the record straight and end this campaign of defamation once and for all." The suit accuses Owens of using her popular podcast to spread "verifiably false and devastating lies" about the Macrons including that Brigitte Macron was born a man, that they are blood relatives and that Macron was chosen to be France's president as part of a CIA-operated mind control programme. "If ever there was a clear-cut case of defamation, this is it," Tom Clare, a lawyer for the Macrons, said in a statement. "Owens both promoted and expanded on those falsehoods and invented new ones, all designed to cause maximum harm to the Macrons and maximize attention and financial gain for herself." Brigitte Macron, 72, has also taken to the courts in France to combat claims she was born a man. Two women were convicted in September of last year of spreading false claims after they posted a YouTube video in December 2021 alleging that Brigitte Macron had once been a man named Jean-Michel Trogneux -- who is actually her brother. The ruling was overturned by a Paris appeals court and Macron appealed to the highest appeals court, the Court de Cassation, earlier this month.

Down to Earth : How does Morocco turn fog into drinking water?
Down to Earth : How does Morocco turn fog into drinking water?

France 24

time5 hours ago

  • France 24

Down to Earth : How does Morocco turn fog into drinking water?

03:04 24/07/2025 Macrons sue Candace Owens over claims that Brigitte Macron is a man France 24/07/2025 Thailand and Cambodia clash with jets and rockets in deadly border row Asia / Pacific 24/07/2025 Thailand : Cambodian attacks kill at least 11 people as conflict escalates Asia / Pacific 24/07/2025 Vote to subpoena all Epstein-related files from Justice Department Americas 24/07/2025 Thailand F-16 jet bombs Cambodian targets as border clash escalates Asia / Pacific 24/07/2025 Thailand and Cambodia border closed after weeks of tensions Asia / Pacific 24/07/2025 Xi urges deeper China-EU trust as Brussels calls for 'real solutions' Asia / Pacific 24/07/2025 Spain beats Germany in Women's Euro 2025 and will play England on Sunday Europe 24/07/2025 War in Ukraine : Russia agrees prisoner swap but no deal on ceaserfire Europe

Thailand and Cambodia border closed after weeks of tensions
Thailand and Cambodia border closed after weeks of tensions

France 24

time5 hours ago

  • France 24

Thailand and Cambodia border closed after weeks of tensions

04:06 24/07/2025 Thailand and Cambodia clash with jets and rockets in deadly border row Asia / Pacific 24/07/2025 Thailand : Cambodian attacks kill at least 11 people as conflict escalates Asia / Pacific 24/07/2025 Thailand F-16 jet bombs Cambodian targets as border clash escalates Asia / Pacific 24/07/2025 Xi urges deeper China-EU trust as Brussels calls for 'real solutions' Asia / Pacific 22/07/2025 Bangladesh plane crash kills at least 27, including 25 children Asia / Pacific 20/07/2025 Dozens dead after Ha Long Bay tourist boat capsizes in Vietnam Asia / Pacific 20/07/2025 Typhoon Wipha batters Honk Kong and brings disruptions Asia / Pacific 17/07/2025 Taipei holds annual air raid drill to prepare for Chinese attack Asia / Pacific 15/07/2025 India orders airlines to inspect certain Boeing models after Air India crash Asia / Pacific

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store