Thailand’s Defence Minister is set to join ongoing high-level negotiations with Cambodia this Saturday to discuss a potential truce. According to Reuters, the Thai Prime Minister confirmed the meeting on Friday as border clashes between the two Southeast Asian neighbors entered their third consecutive week.
Should the Thai Defence Minister reach an agreement with his Cambodian counterpart, the two nations intend to finalize a deal based on the previous pact brokered by US President Donald Trump following the initial round of hostilities in July. Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul emphasized the necessity of mutual commitment, telling reporters in Bangkok that both sides must uphold promises to end threats, provocations, and instigations to successfully reduce hostility.
While a spokesperson for the Cambodian Defence Ministry did not immediately comment, officials from both countries have been holding talks at a border crossing since Wednesday. The conflict has taken a severe human toll since the previous ceasefire collapsed in early December, resulting in at least 98 deaths and displacing over 500,000 people.
International mediation efforts have intensified as the fighting persists. Neither Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, as the ASEAN chair, nor President Trump has yet succeeded in halting the current wave of violence. Additionally, Beijing has increased pressure on both sides, with China’s special envoy for Asian affairs, Deng Xijun, conducting recent diplomatic missions to both Bangkok and Phnom Penh.
“I hope that this time will be the last time to sign such an agreement, so that there will be peace in the area and people can return to their homes,” Anutin stated, reflecting the urgency of the situation. The long-standing dispute over sections of the 817km land border has now expanded into a broad conflict stretching from the forested regions near Laos to various coastal provinces.