Thailand accused Cambodia on Tuesday of having violated a cease-fire in force a few hours earlier under the aegis of Malaysia, and supposed to end almost a week of bloody border fights between the two countries.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced on Monday that Bangkok and Phnom Penh had reached “a common agreement providing for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire” from 12:00 am on Tuesday (7:00 p.m. in Switzerland on Monday).
But after its entry into force, “the Thai part noted that the Cambodian forces had launched armed attacks in several areas of Thai territory,” said Thai army spokesman Winthai Suwaree. “This constitutes a deliberate violation of the agreement and a clear attempt to undermine mutual trust,” he added in a statement. “Thailand is forced to respond appropriately by exercising its right to self -defense.”
“No armed confrontation”
On the Cambodian side, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Defense Maly Socheata said that there had been “no armed confrontation (…) in any region whatsoever”. “The front has been calming since (the entry into force of the) ceasefire” at 12:00 am, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said on Tuesday morning on Facebook.
Despite this accusation and this denied, the two parties proceed on Tuesday morning at meetings between local military commanders along the border, as planned as part of the cease-fire agreement, they announced.
The clashes have killed at least 38 people since Thursday and caused around 300,000 inhabitants.
The two kingdoms of Southeast Asia have been opposed for decades on the layout of their common border, defined in the time of French Indochina. But rarely in recent history, such an episode of violence had shaken the region. Thailand and Cambodia have accused each other of having attacked first, and each camp questioned the sincerity of the opponent, before sitting at the negotiating table, under the eye of the United States and China.
Congratulations from Trump
“Congratulations to everyone!” Wrote President Donald Trump on his Truth Social network after the announcement of the truce, saying that he had spoken to the leaders of the two countries.
The acting Thai Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai praised the intervention of Malaysia, which occupies the rotating presidency of the Association of Southeast Asia Nations (ASEAN), China and “President Trump”. “We have agreed with a ceasefire, which, we hope, will be respected in good faith by both parties,” he said.
For his part, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet judged that this peace agreement offered a chance of a “return to normal”.
A cautious hope dominated among the displaced, on both sides of the border, after the announcement of the ceasefire. In Cambodia, Phean Neth, 45, found refuge in a vast camp of displaced on the site of a temple, far from the fights. “I am so happy that I cannot describe it.”
On the Thai side, Tee Samanjai, 68, is already thinking about his return to the farm and what will do: “check the chickens, fertilize the rice, and take care of the fields”. But the concern is not far away. “I want to come back but I don’t have confidence in Cambodia at all. Nobody in our village trusts ”.
A knife pulled
Bangkok and Phnom Penh were knives drawn since the death of a Khmer soldier in late May during an exchange of fire in a disputed area. Since then, against a backdrop of the nationalist discourse, the two countries have embarked on an outbidding of measures that affected economic flows and people.
Before the triggering of clashes, Thailand also expelled the Cambodian ambassador from its territory and recalled its present in Cambodia. The Khmer kingdom had responded by degrading “at the lowest level” diplomatic relations with its neighbor.
Donald Trump called on the chief of the two camps on Saturday, urging them to get along around a quick agreement, under penalty of freezing discussions on prohibitive customs duties which must strike these two economies dependent on exports on August 1.
The clashes have officially killed 25 on the Thai side, including eleven soldiers, and 13 dead, including five soldiers, on the Cambodian side. More than 138,000 Thai have evacuated risk areas, according to Bangkok, and more than 140,000 Cambodians have done the same, according to Phnom Penh.
The cease-fire agreement provides for the holding of a meeting of a cross-border committee in Cambodia on August 4.
