Overview

• Prime Minister Hun Manet announced that all Cambodians aged 18 to 30 will face mandatory 24-month service under the 2006 law, with women serving on a voluntary basis starting next year
• The conscription drive is designed to fill personnel gaps, strengthen reserve forces and boost professionalism following deadly border clashes with Thailand
• Phnom Penh plans to streamline recruitment procedures and raise defense spending within its $739 million 2025 military budget to support the expanded draft
• Hun Manet demanded that Thailand lift all border closures unconditionally, pledging that Cambodia would reciprocate within hours of crossings reopening
• The move contrasts with Thailand’s lottery-based draft for 20-year-olds and aligns Cambodia with broader Southeast Asian conscription practices