The European Union has released €3 million to support mine clearance along the border between Cambodia and Thailand, a year after armed clashes left large numbers of unexploded devices in the area. Announced on 27 October 2026 and reported the following day, the funding is intended to make border land safe again and to build confidence between the two countries, so that displaced people can return home. The programme combines practical clearance work with dialogue initiatives designed to steady a border region that remains tense despite a ceasefire.

Clearing land on the Cambodian side

On the Cambodian side, €1.6 million will go to the Cambodian Mine Action Centre and to APOPO, a demining organisation, to clear 5.72 million square metres of contaminated land in Preah Vihear and Oddar Meanchey provinces. The work will focus on cluster munitions and other unexploded ordnance left by fighting, including devices that landed in residential areas and farmland. The Cambodian project runs for 18 months, from October 2026 to March 2028, and is meant to restore farming and everyday economic activity in affected communities as well as improving safety for residents.

Training and dialogue on the Thai side

The remainder of the funding will be spent in Thailand, where the EU is working with the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining to equip and train the Thailand Mine Action Centre. The wider programme also includes bilateral dialogue work, aimed at keeping communication open while clearance proceeds. The EU has separately offered satellite imagery to help monitor the ceasefire, according to published analysis of its border efforts. Clearance alone cannot settle the underlying dispute, but removing explosives from fields, roads and village land is a concrete step that allows families to return and rebuild, whatever the pace of the political talks.

Sources: Agence Europe, Khmer Daily Network.