Thailand–Cambodia Border Conflict

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MAPS & CARTOGRAPHIC EVIDENCE

Maps are both evidence and claims

11 MAP RECORDS

Compare treaty maps, diagrams from judicial proceedings, cultural-heritage management maps, coordinate-based maps of clash locations, and humanitarian and maritime maps. Each record states what the map shows and what it does not show.

01Producer

Distinguish joint commissions, courts, governments, reporting, and research institutions.

02Date of production

The meaning of battle maps and barrier locations changes when the date changes.

03Legal effect

Do not conflate demarcation maps, evidentiary maps, management maps, and explanatory diagrams.

04Place-name variation

Search with Thai, Khmer, and English alternative names in parallel.

CARTOGRAPHIC ARCHIVE

Read maps comparatively

Thumbnails on the cards are conceptual diagrams, not substitutes for the originals. Only the Military Conflict Atlas distinguishes source-checked WGS84 coordinates from approximate regional points.

11 MAP RECORDS

THKH
2010201120252026
CONCEPTUAL THUMBNAIL / NOT TO SCALE
Military / crisis

Military Conflict Atlas 2010–2026

WGS84 points / Natural Earth regional base

Scope
Intermittent clashes in 2010, two periods of fighting in 2011, the July and December 2025 fighting, and post-ceasefire incidents in 2026.
How to read it
Switch between years and distinguish fighting from mine, explosion, and security incidents.
Caution
Approximate regional points are not precise strike coordinates. Country shapes do not show legal boundary demarcation or effective control.
Open map ↗
THKH
PREAH VIHEARTA MUENPOIPETKOH KONG
CONCEPTUAL THUMBNAIL / NOT TO SCALE
Entire border

Overview of the Cambodia–Thailand land boundary

U.S. Department of State, International Boundary Study No. 40

Scope
A foundational overview of the land boundary from the Laos tripoint to the Gulf of Thailand, treaty sectors, and principal terrain.
How to read it
A first map for reviewing the overall boundary, treaty sectors, and principal terrain.
Caution
This is a 1966 U.S. government study, not a joint demarcation map.
Original source: U.S. Department of State ↗
THKH
WATERSHEDTEMPLEANNEX I LINE
CONCEPTUAL THUMBNAIL / NOT TO SCALE
Law / history

Annex I map (Preah Vihear / Phra Viharn area)

Franco-Siamese mapping / ICJ case record

Scope
The central sector in which the watershed line in the Dangrek range and the boundary line on the map diverge.
How to read it
Read arguments in the 1962 judgment concerning acceptance of the map, acquiescence, and estoppel.
Caution
The relationship between the treaty text and the map, the process by which it was produced, and Thailand’s conduct must be considered together.
Original source: International Court of Justice ↗
THKH
PDZTEMPLEPHNOM TRAP
CONCEPTUAL THUMBNAIL / NOT TO SCALE
Law / history

Provisional Demilitarized Zone (PDZ)

ICJ provisional measures, 18 July 2011

Scope
The Provisional Demilitarized Zone (PDZ) and withdrawal area established around Preah Vihear / Phra Viharn.
How to read it
Understand the intersection of judicial action, ASEAN observers, and troop operations on the ground.
Caution
This was a provisional measure, not a map determining the final boundary or sovereignty.
Original source: International Court of Justice ↗
THKH
PROMONTORYTEMPLEPHNOM TRAP
CONCEPTUAL THUMBNAIL / NOT TO SCALE
Law / history

The promontory and the scope of the judgment

ICJ interpretation judgment

Scope
The spatial relationship among the temple, the promontory of Preah Vihear, and Phnom Trap.
How to read it
Distinguish the legally determined area from areas left to bilateral demarcation.
Caution
The judgment did not determine every area around the temple as a single whole.
Original source: International Court of Justice ↗
THKH
PROPERTYBUFFER ZONEACCESS
CONCEPTUAL THUMBNAIL / NOT TO SCALE
Cultural heritage

World Heritage property and buffer zone

Temple of Preah Vihear — property and buffer zone

Scope
The 154.7 ha property and its 2,642.5 ha buffer zone.
How to read it
Distinguish maps of territorial sovereignty from maps for cultural-heritage management.
Caution
The inscribed World Heritage property is not a legal instrument demarcating the boundary.
Original source: UNESCO World Heritage Centre ↗
THKH
SHEET 1BOUNDARY PILLARJOINT SURVEY
CONCEPTUAL THUMBNAIL / NOT TO SCALE
Boundary practice

JBC joint survey and boundary-demarcation map series

MOU 2000 / MOU 43 framework

Scope
Bilateral technical materials addressing treaties, boundary pillars, joint survey, and topographic maps.
How to read it
Examine demarcation procedure and units of work rather than only claims about individual locations.
Caution
Joint survey maps and minutes are not fully public, and government-published maps alone cannot reproduce the full record.
Original source: Thailand Treaty Database / JBC ↗
THKH
MOM BEIPREAH VIHEARTA KWAITA MUEN
CONCEPTUAL THUMBNAIL / NOT TO SCALE
Military / crisis

Principal locations of the 2025 fighting

Ta Muen / Ta Moan, Ta Kwai / Ta Krabei, Preah Vihear corridor

Scope
Multiple fronts dispersed among temple complexes, passes, high ground, and crossing points.
How to read it
Read the crisis across the border corridor rather than as a contest over a single temple.
Caution
The parties’ wartime maps of control diverge substantially; the date and producer must be checked.
Original source: NBR roundtable / public reporting ↗
THKH
PREY CHANNONG YA KAEOCHOB RUAN
CONCEPTUAL THUMBNAIL / NOT TO SCALE
Civilians / humanitarian

Civilian returns and barrier locations

Prey Chan / Ban Nong Ya Kaeo, Chob Ruan and adjacent settlements

Scope
Locations where disputes continue after the ceasefire over civilian returns, agricultural land, containers, and barbed wire.
How to read it
Understand the problem created when ceasefire lines, administrative boundaries, and lived space do not coincide.
Caution
Place names, coordinates, and sovereignty claims do not align; this is an area where both parties’ statements should be presented in parallel.
Original source: Cambodian MFAIC / Thai MFA ↗
THKH
CONFIRMEDSUSPECTEDRETURN ROUTE
CONCEPTUAL THUMBNAIL / NOT TO SCALE
Civilians / humanitarian

Mine and unexploded-ordnance contamination and incident locations

Legacy contamination and disputed new incidents

Scope
Hazards remaining along former battlefields, return routes, and military patrol routes near the border.
How to read it
Distinguish maps assigning responsibility from maps prioritizing humanitarian clearance.
Caution
The parties’ accounts diverge over the contaminated area, incident locations, and whether new mines were laid.
Original source: Landmine Monitor ↗
THKH
THAI CLAIMOCACAMBODIAN CLAIM
CONCEPTUAL THUMBNAIL / NOT TO SCALE
Maritime

Overlapping maritime claims in the Gulf of Thailand (OCA)

MOU 2001 / MOU 44 and UNCLOS conciliation

Scope
The maritime area in which the parties’ claim lines overlap, and which is subject to boundary delimitation and joint development.
How to read it
Understand how a legal issue distinct from the land boundary is nevertheless linked to it in domestic politics.
Caution
Do not conflate sovereignty over Ko Kut / Koh Kood with maritime delimitation and joint resource development.
Original source: Reuters / UNCLOS process reporting ↗

EDITORIAL NOTE

Do not reach a conclusion from a single map

This archive does not treat maps as neutral background images. Colonial-era survey maps, ICJ materials, World Heritage nomination maps, and operational maps produced by the parties were created for different purposes and under different institutions and authorities.

Because the parties’ claims diverge over control and barrier locations in 2025–26, unverified lines are not displayed as a “settled boundary.” Site-wide audit, including maps →