Cambodian Senate President Hun Sen donned army fatigues as he visited soldiers stationed along the Thai-Cambodia border today.

Footage shows the ex-dictator wearing a military uniform as he met troops in Oddar Meanchey amid the ongoing territorial dispute with Thailand.

Hun Sen joined the Khmer Rouge when he was 18 but later defected and helped to topple the genocidal regime in 1979. He lost an eye on the battlefield.

The soldier served as Cambodian Prime Minister from 1985 to 2023, but was widely criticised for the widespread corruption, political repression, and human rights violations that marked his rule.

His visit to the border comes amid heightened tensions with neighbouring Thailand, following a deadly clash between troops from both sides in a disputed area in Nam Yuen district, Ubon Ratchathani, on May 28. The skirmish had left a Cambodian sergeant dead.

Thailand expressed its intention to resolve the dispute through existing bilateral mechanisms. However, Cambodia vowed to take the case before the International Court of Justice in The Hague.

Hun Sen and his son, the current Prime Minister Hun Manet, claim that the disputed area belongs to Cambodia. But Thailand maintained that the area is a no-man's land within an un-demarcated zone.