Why are Thailand and Cambodia fighting? The conflict explained

Times

24-07-2025

Who fired the first shot? That question lies behind the sudden and dramatic escalation of tensions between Thailand and Cambodia along their disputed border, where clashes have escalated into full-blown bombing raids, the complete closure of the 500-mile border and the expulsion of ambassadors from both sides.
But behind the latest violence lies hundreds of years of nationalist rivalry, a century of fallout from the colonial era, the fragile egos of former strongmen whose children now rule each country, and a new sense of economic endangerment in two states most affected by President Trump's tariff war.
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Cambodia's golden age and its historical reference point for the ages was the Angkorian era, when the Khmer Empire ruled across territory that reached deep into modern-day Thailand and Vietnam.
The empire ended when the city of Angkor was sacked by the Ayutthaya kingdom, the forerunner of the modern state of Thailand. While Thailand stayed independent throughout the colonial era, Cambodia became part of French Indochina. The present dispute stems from a 1907 map drawn under French colonial rule that Cambodia used as a reference for its post-independence borders, while Thailand argues the map is inaccurate.
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Much of the prior border disputes between the neighbours have centred on temples built during the Angkorian era, notably the nearly 1,000-year-old Preah Vihear temple, which sits along the disputed border. It is difficult to overstate how bound up such temples are in Cambodia's sense of national pride. It is one of a handful of countries in the world to feature a building on its national flag: Angkor Wat, the majestic centrepiece of its lost civilisation and the largest religious monument anywhere in the world.
Preah Vihear temple
ALAMY
In 1962, the International Court of Justice awarded sovereignty over the Preah Vihear temple area to Cambodia, a ruling that became an irritant in relations with Thailand. The court reaffirmed that ruling in 2013 after Cambodia revived proceedings after clashes between its army and Thai forces that displaced thousands and killed 20 people. Thailand has rejected the court's jurisdiction.
The latest violence first flared in May with an exchange of fire between troops on both sides that killed one Cambodian soldier. Despite an agreement to de-escalate, both sides took further measures, with Thailand adding tight restrictions at the border with Cambodia preventing almost all crossings except for students, medical patients and others with essential needs.
But the matter escalated to a dramatic political level last month, when a phone call between Thailand's prime minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, and Cambodia's former prime minister and sitting president of the senate, Hun Sen, was leaked, causing outrage in Thailand.
Paetongtarn is the daughter of the former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, a longtime friend of Hun Sen, whose son Hun Manet succeeded him as Cambodia's prime minister in 2023.
In the call, which concerned the border dispute, Paetongtarn called Hun Sen by the honorific 'uncle' and voiced criticism of Thailand's military leadership. The leaking of the call, by none other than Hun Sen himself, led to her being suspended from office for alleged ethics violations. Her second-largest coalition partner withdrew from government, citing her perceived weakness towards Cambodia.
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The border dispute ended the friendly relationship between Thaksin Shinawatra and Hun Sen. Now it again threatens the entire relationship between the southeast Asian neighbours. As of today, the entire border is sealed and fighting is continuing, with diplomatic relations downgraded and each side announcing bans and boycotts on each other's goods. The result is the collapse of border trade worth billions of dollars at a time when both countries face some of the punitive tariffs announced by Trump in his 'liberation day' effort to close trade deficits with mostly developing nations. How this round of hostilities ends is far from clear.