16/08/2025
Thailand just played a new card.
Theyβve invited Michael Alfaro, currently in Cambodia to cross the border and βhear their side.β
Cambodia has already anchored the fight in law, treaties, and ICJ rulings. That is where our strength lies. Thailand cannot win there. So what do they do? They try to drag the conflict into optics and headlines, where feelings matter more than facts.
Alfaro is their instrument.
He writes that after meeting Thai officials he will βbrief President Trumpβ a curious line, since Trump holds no office today. Thatβs not journalism, thatβs theater. It signals to the Thai audience that theyβve got a channel into American power, whether real or imagined.
For Cambodia, the risk is clear: if this story is turned into βboth sides blame each other,β our legal clarity gets blurred into noise. That is exactly Thailandβs objective.
The lesson for us:
β Thailand knows they cannot stand on ICJ rulings, so they shift to foreign influencers.
β They want to create the image of balance, because balance dilutes truth.
β They are desperate to escape the courtroom of law and enter the courtroom of perception.
Cambodia must see through this. The battlefield is no longer only in Preah Vihear or Ta Moan, it is in the feeds and the headlines. And on that front too, truth must hold its ground.