Thailand, Cambodia weigh peace talks after Trump's tariff threat
BANGKOK: Thailand and Cambodia may hold talks as soon as Sunday (July 27) to bring an end to their deadly border clashes after US President Donald Trump warned Washington wouldn't make a trade deal with either country while the conflict continued.
Thailand's Acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai said foreign ministers on both sides could soon talk, but any ceasefire agreement would be subject to conditions such as resolving the dispute bilaterally, and withdrawing troops and the use of lethal weapons. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, who's welcomed Trump's bid to end the conflict, has already assigned his foreign minister to talk with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to coordinate peace talks with Bangkok.
After separate calls with the Thai and Cambodian leaders on Saturday, Trump said they agreed to "quickly work out a ceasefire,' according to posts on Truth Social.
Phumtham said he told Trump that Thailand wanted assurances the terms of any ceasefire agreement will not be reversed. Thai Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa and Rubio are also scheduled to hold talks, he said.
"Bilateral negotiations, a genuine desire for a ceasefire, and the withdrawal of troops and heavy weapons from where they are now, will help assure us of their sincerity in pursuing a ceasefire agreement,' Phumtham told reporters.
Heavy artillery shelling was reported on Sunday from multiple locations across the 800-kilometre shared border. Both sides blamed the other for further renewed aggression. The Thai army said Cambodian forces launched rockets and artillery into civilian areas including homes and hospitals in the early hours of Sunday. It also warned Phnom Penh could potentially deploy long-range missiles.
Cambodia in turn said that Thai troops were the first to launch attacks early Sunday. Cambodia remained committed to an immediate ceasefire and to resolving all disputes through peaceful means in accordance with international law, said Maly Socheata, a spokeswoman at Cambodia's Ministry of National Defense.
Clashes between Thailand and Cambodia, which erupted on July 24 after months-long tension along the border, has killed more than 30 people and displaced over 150,000 civilians on both sides.
It remains to be seen if Trump's threat of trade as a tool to end hostilities - a tactic he claims to have successfully used in halting India-Pakistan clashes in May - could lead to a lasting agreement. The Trump administration has threatened 36 per cent tariffs on both Thailand and Cambodia.
We "do not want to make any Deal, with either Country, if they are fighting - And I have told them so,' Trump said on Truth Social. Both parties "are also looking to get back to the 'Trading Table' with the United States, which we think is inappropriate to do until such time as the fighting STOPS,' he said.
Thai officials have previously said they are nearing a deal with the US to lower the tariff with offers of greater market access to American products to narrow the US$46 billion trade surplus with Washington.
The Thai government is under pressure to strike a deal before the Aug. 1 deadline, especially as neighboring Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam have secured trade agreements with the Trump administration. The US is Thailand's largest export market with shipments valued at US$63 billion last year.
Thailand has put the death toll on its side at 21 including eight soldiers, with at least 36 civilians injured. Cambodia has so far reported 13 deaths including five soldiers, and injuries to 70 others.
Thailand and Cambodia have a long history of border tensions, though ties have remained mostly stable since a deadly clash in 2011 that killed dozens. The last major escalation focused on the Preah Vihear temple, a historic flashpoint rooted in disputes dating back to the French colonial period.
Much of the current dispute stems from maps drawn on differing interpretations of early 20th-century Franco-Siamese treaties, which defined the border between Thailand and Cambodia, then part of French Indochina.
Fighting erupted last week after Thailand expelled Cambodia's ambassador and recalled its own envoy from Phnom Penh in response to landmine explosions that maimed at least two Thai soldiers and injured several others. The clashes have involved fighter jets, rocket launchers and heavy artillery with Thailand using its navy to repel Cambodian attacks near the Gulf of Thailand. - Bloomberg
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