Political tensions between the two countries have not eased after a border skirmish on 25 May, while Thailand rejects external “interference” in the border issue. This crisis is intertwined with a court ruling expected on 13 June regarding former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was linked in the past by friendship and business to Cambodia’s ruling Hun clan. Meanwhile, Thailand remains caught in never-ending tensions between civilian and military leaders.

Some 150 delegates from Asian countries and around the world met in Cambodia’s capital for the Eighth Buddhist-Christian Colloquium organised by the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue. Maha Ghosananda, a venerable Theravada master close to the victims of the Cambodian genocide, was remembered. Through the “active presence of love, justice, and enduring human solidarity”, a world can be built “where peace is more than the absence of conflict.”

Thailand has downplayed the incident, while Cambodia has not yet issued a statement. No one was killed or wounded during the 10-minute exchange. Quick action by the military of the two countries avoided escalation. The incident stems from unresolved border disputes, which also concern Laos.

Fifty years after the fall of Phnom Penh to Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge, the book "Beyond the Horizon" is published in Italian. In it a French woman describes the genocide with the eyes of someone who had come to Cambodia for love. The book is her diary of hell, misery, lies and death experienced with her daughters. The story is extremely interesting and credible for a country where a UN tribunal failed to render justice and uncover the truth.

The leader of the Nation Power Party was one of the few critical voices still free, opposed to the Hun clan, which has ruled Cambodia of 40 years. The court found him guilty of "incitement". His "crime" was that of defending peasants from land grabs and of criticising government policies.

The strategic infrastructure in the south-west had a makeover thanks to Chinese support. For Prime Minister Hun Manet, the country will not allow foreign military bases on its territory, but is open to Chinese aid. Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to visit the country to promote China as the only reliable partner for the region, taking advantage of US disengagement and Trump's tariffs.