A seasoned voice in Cambodian politics, Samdech Hun Sen, has weighed in on the ongoing border tensions. He serves as the President of Cambodia’s Senate. Mr. Hun Sen called the situation with its neighbor a “lose-lose” for everyone involved. He stressed that Cambodia did not start the trouble and felt it had no choice but to react.
Mr. Hun Sen shared these thoughts on July 3, 2025. He was giving a speech to teachers and students in Prey Veng Province. This event took place at the Kamchay Mear Study and Training Center. His remarks aimed to shed light on the difficulties at the shared border.
The former Cambodian leader also offered some clear advice to Prime Minister Hun Manet. He told the Prime Minister not to worry if border crossings closed or if operating hours changed. Instead, he suggested the focus should be on getting things back to normal. That means returning to how they were before June 7, 2025. Mr. Hun Sen added that Cambodia did not need any new talks. They simply wished for everything to revert to the previous state.
He then laid out a simple way for the other side to resolve things. If they worried about how their people saw them, they could save face easily. They just needed to tell their public that the changed hours were over. Whether they called it a border closure or a new schedule did not matter to Cambodia. The key was to announce that all border checkpoints would open as usual. This means operating from 6:00 AM to 10:00 PM. That would be enough, he said.