The National Security Council on Thursday resolved to terminate MoU 44 – the 2001 memorandum on overlapping maritime claims with Cambodia – saying the pact has failed to deliver results and has instead fuelled mistrust between the neighbouring countries.
Government spokeswoman Rachada Thanadirek said on Thursday that the NSC, at its second meeting of 2026 chaired by Prime Minister and Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, agreed in principle to cancel the agreement.
The decision will be sent to the cabinet for consideration before the Foreign Affairs Ministry begins the formal termination process.
MoU 44 was intended to guide negotiations over overlapping maritime claims between Thailand and Cambodia, with the aim of enabling joint development of potentially resource-rich offshore areas.
However, critics have long pointed to the lack of progress and concerns that the agreement could complicate sovereignty issues, contributing to periodic tensions in bilateral ties.
Ms Rachada said the decision rested on three reasons. First, MoU 44 was intended as a framework for negotiating joint management of offshore seabed resources between Thailand and Cambodia, but over more than two decades the sides met only five times, reached no mutually beneficial agreement and saw talks exacerbate maritime-boundary disputes rather than enable shared development.
Second, cancelling the MoU is meant to end negotiations under that framework. If Cambodia still wishes to pursue joint development, Phnom Penh should signal its intent so both countries can negotiate a new, more feasible framework that avoids triggering sovereignty disputes.
Third, repeated Thailand-Cambodia tensions over 25 years have hindered progress; with frictions persisting, meaningful negotiations on joint offshore development remain difficult.
The priority should be for the two sides to agree on maritime boundaries first, then pursue joint development in good faith with a fair sharing of benefits, Ms Rachada added.
‘After 25 years, with only five rounds of negotiations and no ability to carry out the objectives, it is clear this MoU cannot lead to the goals being achieved.’ the government spokeswoman said.
‘Its existence has not produced benefits and has instead created suspicion and conflict between the two countries. It should therefore be cancelled and a new negotiating framework put in place to reduce tensions and allow the resources to be used in a genuinely beneficial way.’
In a policy statement to parliament on April 9, Mr Anutin reiterated Thailand’s commitment to addressing issues with Cambodia through peaceful means and existing bilateral mechanisms, while also ordering an accelerated study of options to cancel MoU 44-an approach the NSC has now endorsed.