Cambodia says immediate ceasefire purpose of talks; Thailand questions its sincerity, Asia News
Monday's talks to end the deadliest fighting in more than a decade between the Southeast Asian neighbours are being hosted by Malaysia, the chair of the regional Asean bloc. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said the talks were co-organised by the United States, and that China would also take part in them.
Both Thailand and Cambodia accuse the other of starting the hostilities last week and then escalating them. On Monday, officials from both countries said clashes along the disputed border were ongoing ahead of the talks later in the day.
"We are not confident in Cambodia, their actions so far have reflected insincerity in solving the problem," acting Thai Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai told reporters ahead of his departure for Kuala Lumpur.
"Cambodia has violated international law, but everybody wants to see peace. Nobody wants to see violence that affects civilians."
Cambodia has strongly denied Thai accusations it has fired at civilian targets, and has instead said that Thailand has put innocent lives at risk. It has called for the international community to condemn Thailand's aggression against it.
"The purpose of this meeting is to achieve an immediate 'ceasefire', initiated by President Donald Trump and agreed to by the Prime Ministers of Cambodia and Thailand," Hun Manet said in a post on X as he departed for the talks.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said State Department officials would assist the peace efforts, after President Donald Trump had earlier said that he thought both leaders wanted to settle the conflict.
The tensions between Thailand and Cambodia have intensified since the killing in late May of a Cambodian soldier during a brief skirmish. Border troops on both sides were reinforced amid a full-blown diplomatic crisis that brought Thailand's fragile coalition government to the brink of collapse.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim had proposed ceasefire talks soon after the border dispute erupted into conflict on Thursday, and China and the United States also offered to assist in negotiations.
Anwar said he expected to chair the negotiations after being asked by the two governments to try to find a peace settlement, state media agency Bernama reported on Sunday.
"So, I'm discussing the parameters, the conditions, but what is important is (an) immediate ceasefire," Anwar said.
Thailand and Cambodia have bickered for decades over undemarcated points along their 817-km land border, with ownership of the ancient Hindu temples Ta Moan Thom and the 11th century Preah Vihear central to the disputes.
Preah Vihear was awarded to Cambodia by the International Court of Justice in 1962, but the situation worsened in 2008 after Cambodia attempted to list it as a Unesco World Heritage site. Skirmishes over several years brought at least a dozen deaths.
Cambodia said in June it had asked the court to resolve its disputes with Thailand. Bangkok says it has never recognised the court's jurisdiction and prefers a bilateral approach.
[[nid:720680]]
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
AsiaOne
8 minutes ago
- AsiaOne
US senator wants Elon Musk to block use of Starlink by financial fraud groups in Southeast Asia, World News
WASHINGTON — A Democratic senator on Monday (July 28) urged SpaceX CEO Elon Musk to block transnational criminal groups in Southeast Asia from using Starlink satellite internet service to commit fraud against Americans. Senator Maggie Hassan cited recent reports that Starlink is being used to facilitate fraud against Americans by a broad range of transnational criminal organisations operating "scam compounds" in Southeast Asia. The US Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network said these groups defrauded Americans out of billions of dollars, she added. "Scam networks in Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos, however, have apparently continued to use Starlink despite service rules permitting SpaceX to terminate access for fraudulent activity," Hassan wrote in a letter to Musk seen by Reuters. "SpaceX has a responsibility to block criminals from using the service to target Americans." SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment. For years, criminal networks have trafficked hundreds of thousands of people to scam compounds across Southeast Asia, including many along the Thai-Myanmar border, where victims are forced to work in illegal online schemes, according to the United Nations. "While most people have probably noticed the increasing number of scam texts, calls, and emails they're receiving, they may not know that transnational criminals halfway across the world may be perpetrating these scams by using Starlink internet access," Hassan wrote. Since February, Thailand has halted electricity, internet, and fuel supplies to five Myanmar border areas, including Myawaddy, in a bid to disrupt the scam centres, which have become an escalating regional security concern. International pressure to shut down the scam centres intensified following the abduction of Chinese actor Wang Xing, who was kidnapped after arriving in Thailand in January. He was later rescued by Thai police, who located him across the border in Myanmar. Criminal networks, mainly emanating from China, are known to run several of these scam centres, including those in the Myawaddy region, according to the United States Institute of Peace. [[nid:720595]]
Business Times
8 minutes ago
- Business Times
Thailand-Cambodia border calm as military commanders hold talks
[BANGKOK] Military commanders from Thailand and Cambodia held talks on Tuesday (Jul 29), as calm return to their disputed border and displaced residents began trickling back, following the South-east Asian neighbours announcing a truce to end five days of fighting. Thai and Cambodian leaders met in Malaysia on Monday and agreed to a ceasefire deal to halt their deadliest conflict in more than a decade that has killed at least 40 people, mostly civilians, and displaced over 300,000 in both countries. Although Thailand's military said that there had been attacks by Cambodian troops in at least five locations early on Tuesday, violating the ceasefire that had come into effect from midnight, commanders from both sides met and held talks, a Thai army spokesman said. This includes negotiations between the general leading Thailand's 2nd region army, which oversees the stretch of the frontier that has seen the heaviest fighting during the conflict, and his Cambodian counterpart, Thai Major Gen Winthai Suvaree told reporters. The commanders, who met at the border, agreed to maintain the ceasefire, stop any troop movement, and facilitate the return of the wounded and dead bodies, he said. 'Each side will establish a coordinating team of four to resolve any problems,' Winthai said. A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU Friday, 8.30 am Asean Business Business insights centering on South-east Asia's fast-growing economies. Sign Up Sign Up In Bangkok, Thailand's acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai, who travelled to the Malaysian capital to secure the truce deal, said he had spoken to Cambodia's defence minister and calm had returned to border area. 'There is no escalation,' Phumtham told reporters. 'Right now things are calm.' Maly Socheata, a spokesperson for the Cambodian Defence Ministry, said at a briefing on Tuesday that there had been no new fighting along the border. Vehicular traffic and daily activity resumed in the Kantharalak district of Thailand's Sisaket province on Tuesday, about 30 km from the frontlines, where Thai and Cambodian troops remain amassed. Chaiya Phumjaroen, 51, said he returned to town to reopen his shop early on Tuesday, after hearing of the ceasefire deal on the news. 'I am very happy that a ceasefire happened,' he said. 'If they continue to fight, we have no opportunity to make money.' In Cambodia's Oddar Meanchey province, 63-year-old Ly Kim Eng sat in front of a makeshift tarpaulin shelter, waiting for directions after hearing of the ceasefire deal. 'So, if the authorities announce it is safe for all of the refugees to return home, I would immediately return,' he said. The South-east Asian neighbours have wrangled for decades over their disputed frontier and have been on a conflict footing since the killing of a Cambodian soldier in a skirmish late in May, which led to a troop buildup on both sides and a full-blown diplomatic crisis. Monday's peace talks came after a sustained push by Malaysian Premier Anwar Ibrahim and US President Donald Trump, with the latter warning Thai and Cambodian leaders that trade negotiations would not progress if fighting continued. Thailand and Cambodia face a tariff of 36 per cent on their goods in the US, their biggest export market, unless a reduction can be negotiated. After the ceasefire deal was reached, Trump said he had spoken to both leaders and had instructed his trade team to restart tariff talks. Pichai Chunhavajira, Thailand's finance minister, said on Tuesday that trade talks with Washington are expected to be concluded before August 1, and that US tariffs on the country are not expected to be as high as 36 per cent. The ceasefire deal reflected a rare convergence of interest between the US and China, which also pushed for the talks, but the agreement itself remained fragile and third-party monitoring was essential to keep it in place, said Thitinan Pongsudhirak, a political scientist at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University. 'The ceasefire agreement has to be enforced,' he said. 'It cannot be left to Thailand and Cambodia to implement because the hostilities are running so deep now.' REUTERS
CNA
8 minutes ago
- CNA
CNA938 Rewind - Thai-Cambodia ceasefire: How it was reached
ASEAN chair Malaysia succeeded in securing an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in the violent Thai-Cambodia border dispute, which has displaced hundreds of thousands. Andrea Heng and Hairianto Diman analyse the calculations it took to secure the truce, including the roles of the US and China, with Dr Gregory Raymond, Senior Lecturer, Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs.
