logo
Thailand-Cambodia dispute: A historical perspective

Thailand-Cambodia dispute: A historical perspective

SBS Australia3 days ago
LISTEN TO
SBS Indonesian
17:53 Indonesian A day before the ceasefire was reached, SBS Indonesian talked to Dr Muhammad Rum, Head f Master's Study Program at the Department of International Relations at the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences at University of Gajah Mada. Dr Rum explained the historical context of the dispute and also the significance domestic political roles of both sides that play apart in the conflict. However, since both Thailand and Cambodia are members of ASEAN, Dr Rum believed that the dispute should be solved through a dialogue that could be mediated by the current ASEAN Chairmanship which is Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dr Anwar Ibrahim. Listen to SBS Indonesian every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday at 3 pm. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram, and listen to our podcasts .
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Cambodia says it will nominate Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize for helping end border conflict with Thailand
Cambodia says it will nominate Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize for helping end border conflict with Thailand

ABC News

time5 hours ago

  • ABC News

Cambodia says it will nominate Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize for helping end border conflict with Thailand

Cambodia's deputy prime minister says the country will nominate Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize after he helped secure a ceasefire with Thailand after days of deadly skirmishes. At least 43 people have been killed in the intense clashes, which lasted five days and displaced more than 300,000 people on both sides of the border in the worst violence between the neighbouring countries in more than a decade. Sun Chanthol thanks the US president for bringing peace and said he deserved to be nominated for the prize. "We acknowledge his great efforts for peace," Mr Chanthol said. The Nobel Peace Prize is the highest-profile international award given to an individual or organisation deemed to have done the most to "advance fellowship between nations". Cambodia said it would recommend Mr Trump for the award, after he made a phone call that reportedly broke a deadlock between Phnom Penh and Bangkok at the weekend. Reuters spoke to four sources from both countries to ascertain what secured the ceasefire that stopped the conflict. When Mr Trump called Thai Acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai on Saturday, two days after fighting erupted along a 200-km-long stretch of the border, Bangkok had not responded to mediation offers from Malaysia and China, said a Thai government source with direct knowledge. Thailand said it preferred bilateral negotiations. On Sunday, a day after his initial call, Mr Trump said that Thailand and Cambodia had agreed to meet to work out a ceasefire, and that Washington would not move ahead with tariff negotiations with both until the conflict had ended. The source said as the Thai and Cambodian foreign ministries started talking, following Mr Trump's call, Bangkok set out its terms: the meeting must be between the two prime ministers and at a neutral location. On Monday, the peace deal was announced in Malaysia, with Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Manet standing alongside Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and Thai Acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai. Pakistan said in June that it would recommend Mr Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize for his work in helping to resolve a conflict with India, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last month he had nominated the US president for the award. Reuters/ABC

‘Can you just shut up?': Cumberland Council meeting descends into screaming match
‘Can you just shut up?': Cumberland Council meeting descends into screaming match

News.com.au

time20 hours ago

  • News.com.au

‘Can you just shut up?': Cumberland Council meeting descends into screaming match

An extraordinary screaming match has erupted at a western Sydney council meeting after a local member told his female colleague to 'shut up when I'm talking'. Labor Mayor Ola Hamed was forced to call a 15-minute adjournment during Cumberland City Council's meeting on Thursday night after the shocking row exploded between Ahmed Ouf and Diane Colman, who leapt to her feet and screamed, 'You cannot speak to me like that!' Cr Ouf, an independent, was speaking in support of a motion about the city's 2026 Easter Extravaganza nearly two hours into the meeting, when he hit out at apparent interjections from the Labor councillor. 'Can you just shut up when I'm talking, OK?' Cr Ouf snapped. 'I beg your pardon, Councillor,' Mayor Hamed interjected. 'When I'm talking this is my time, not your time,' Cr Ouf told Cr Colman. 'When I talk, you shut up, OK?' 'Oh, point of order, Mayor, point of order!' Cr Colman called out. Cr Ouf asked, 'Why is she talking while I'm talking? Why is she taking from my time?' Cr Colman yelled back across the chamber, 'How dare you!' Cr Ouf hit back, 'You just keep your mouth shut while I'm talking. I never, ever spoke when you were talking or having time.' At that point Cr Colman leapt to her feet and exploded. 'You cannot speak to me like that!' she screamed. 'You show respect! You show respect!' Cr Ouf yelled back. 'You show me some respect!' Cr Colman went on. 'How dare you speak to me like that! How dare you!' Cr Ouf said he was 'not intimidated, not 100 of you'. Cr Colman screamed again, 'How dare you? Who you think you're speaking to?' Cr Ouf told her, 'Then show respect so you can be respected. When I'm talking, you stay shut.' Mayor Hamed then called an adjournment. Libertarian Councillor Steve Christou, who shared a viral clip of the blow-up on social media, has sided with Cr Ouf. He claimed Cr Colman 'was interjecting during his speech'. 'Mind you, no one was interjecting Cr Colman all night,' he told 'I've previously had run-ins before with Cr Colman interjecting [during] my speeches. Yes, Ahmed told her to shut up in frustration, but Cr Colman had a meltdown of epic proportions. It continued after the camera went off. Quite frankly it created a very unhealthy and unsafe workplace environment, not just for councillors but for the poor staff who had to witness this behaviour and work through it.' Cr Christou said it was unclear exactly what the alleged interjections were about. 'She was making some kind of remarks, they were a bit inaudible,' he said. 'She claims she was trying to correct him on something he had stated. He was speaking on the Easter motion but then he turned his attention to Falun Dafa and whether we should acknowledge it in Cumberland or not. I think he was questioned on 'why are you raising Falun Dafa'. But she was interjecting, speaking while he was speaking. In all honesty you can't just stir something up and instigate an issue and then claim misogyny.' Cr Christou said in 'any other workplace there would have been disciplinary action and instant dismissal'. 'This needs to be looked into, you can't rug pull it, someone has to speak up,' he said. 'I've previously raised concerns about behaviours. At some point, just because you're in the public sphere doesn't mean you get a free pass to do what you want. No other workplace would tolerate this type of behaviour.' Cr Christou said Cumberland ratepayers 'deserve better', particularly after a 7.1 per cent rate hike last month.

Border conflict reveals how Cambodia and Thailand have leveled up their weapons of war
Border conflict reveals how Cambodia and Thailand have leveled up their weapons of war

ABC News

timea day ago

  • ABC News

Border conflict reveals how Cambodia and Thailand have leveled up their weapons of war

A fragile ceasefire is holding after the most violent border clashes in more than a decade between Thailand and Cambodia, but human rights groups are urging a United Nations-led investigation into alleged war crimes and civilian harm. The five-day conflict displaced more than 300,000 people and left at least 43 dead, in what observers say was the deadliest confrontation between the two neighbours in a decade. The fighting also revealed the depth of global arms proliferation in South-East Asia. Both sides deployed high-end weaponry from a variety of suppliers, ranging from China and Russia to Sweden and the United States. Footage analysed by Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) and defence intelligence group Janes confirmed Cambodia's deployment of Chinese PHL-81 multiple rocket systems and several other systems, highlighting the deepening defence relationship between Phnom Penh and Beijing. Cambodia also deployed Russian BMP-3 infantry fighting tanks, part of a $200 million arms deal signed in 2018, according to analysts. Thailand countered with F-16 fighter jets, drones, Stryker infantry carriers, and Swedish-made Gripens aircraft, according to Thai Ministry of Defence statements and SIPRI's arms trade database. "The level of hardware we saw from both sides this time is unprecedented," said Thailand-based military analyst Anthony Davis. "We're not just talking about rifles and mortars. These are systems designed for high-intensity conflict." Thailand boasts a $US5.73 billion ($8.87 billion) defence budget and 360,000 active military personnel, significantly outmatching Cambodia's 124,300 troops and ageing arsenal. But that numerical advantage belies a more complex picture of shifting regional alliances. While Thailand continues to straddle multiple arms suppliers, Cambodia has rapidly modernised its forces through deeper ties with China. "Since the 2014 [Thai] military coup against Thaksin's sister, [then] prime minister Yingluck [Shinawatra], the US-Thailand defence relationship has somewhat cooled down," said Rahman Yaacob, an independent military analyst focused on South-East Asia. Historically, Cambodia has relied on RM-70 multiple rocket launchers from the Czech Republic and large quantities of Soviet-era weapons acquired during the 1990s and 2000s. But in recent years, it has pivoted more decisively toward Beijing. "China has been Cambodia's most important security trading partner since around 2008," Mr Yaacob said. "Due to human rights abuses in Cambodia, the Americans reduced military assistance." Those abuses — chronicled by Human Rights Watch and the US State Department— include the dismantling of democratic institutions, a crackdown on opposition parties, and suppression of media and civil society under former prime minister Hun Sen. Human rights groups and analysts warned that the recent use of long-range weaponry has made the conflict significantly more dangerous and raised concerns about future escalation. "The Thai military certainly flagged the potential for Cambodia to use its Chinese 300mm PHL-03 multiple launch rocket systems, which pack a much bigger punch than the 122mm BM-21s and have a range of up to 130 kilometres," Mr Davis told the ABC. The Cambodian military said they did not use the PHL-03. Beijing has armed both countries, while quietly discouraging outright escalation, analysts said. Though Cambodia is often seen as China's closest military client in ASEAN, Thailand has also increasingly turned to Beijing, especially in the past decade. "It's not as simple as China backs Cambodia and the US backs Thailand," said Mr Yaacob. "It seems Thailand is moving away from the US to China because the systems are cheaper and less restricted." He noted that China does not impose restrictions on buyers. The US required buyers to request permission before using its Harpoon missiles — even during training. Despite arming both sides, China does not want a full-blown war, said Siemon Wezeman, senior researcher at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. "These things happen and both sides don't want to give in, don't want to say that they started it," said Mr Wezeman. "You see macho guys going at each other, and somebody has to step in between — which luckily Malaysia did in this case." Cluster bomb use, school closures, and a high civilian death toll prompted global outcry. Fortify Rights and Human Rights Watch have accused both sides of potential violations of international humanitarian law. Civilian areas were struck by rockets and artillery, while Fortify Rights earlier this week pointed to evidence that Cambodia was "indiscriminately attacking" civilians. "The use of unguided Grad rockets against civilian-populated areas is by its very nature indiscriminate, and may amount to war crimes," said Peter Bouckaert, senior director at Fortify Rights. According to Human Rights Watch, at least 852 schools and seven hospitals in Thailand were closed for safety reasons. Children were among those harmed in the crossfire. Neither country is party to the Convention on Cluster Munitions, yet both are bound by broader obligations under the Geneva Conventions. While initially denying Cambodian claims, a Thai military spokesperson later acknowledged that cluster munitions "can be utilised when necessary" — a statement that drew condemnation. "Neither Thailand nor Cambodia appears to be paying attention to international humanitarian law at great expense to civilians," said John Sifton, Asia advocacy director at Human Rights Watch. "Diplomatic efforts underway need to prioritise protecting civilians and civilian infrastructure." Thai authorities also confirmed using F-16 jets and drones to launch air strikes against Cambodian positions. Drone footage released by the Royal Thai Air Force showed strikes on what were described as Cambodian weapons depots. The fighting has devastated communities along the 800-kilometre border, long disputed and dotted with ancient temple sites. Many say this bout of violence surpassed previous episodes in intensity. Thidarat Homhuan, 37, was one of thousands of people in Thailand's Surin province who fled their homes and sought refuge in makeshift shelters. She told the AFP news agency the conflict felt more severe than the last major clashes in 2011. "It wasn't this serious back then. People's houses weren't damaged like this. There were no announcements about civilians being injured," she said. "This year is much worse — the number of deaths and injuries is really devastating." The recent cross-border conflict was the first known use of the Swedish Saab Gripen fighter jets by the Royal Thai Air Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard told a defence publication this week that Thailand's request for additional jets had been withheld, stating, "the government is closely monitoring developments in the border conflict." The jets used in the conflict were delivered under a two-phase deal. Thailand bought six Gripens valued at more than $1 billion in 2007. They purchased another six in 2012. The sale was originally defended by Swedish officials who said the aircraft were for reconnaissance, not attack. But Mr Wezeman said that justification had not held up under scrutiny and jets have become a point of contention in Sweden's defence policy debate. Sweden's export controls, which are supposed to limit sales to conflict zones, have come under fresh criticism. Mr Wezeman said Sweden was far from alone in facing these dilemmas. "Weapons have long life spans. You sell them today, and 10 or 15 years later, governments change, coups happen — and suddenly that gear is in a war zone," he said. "This is quite normal. And once it's out there, you're no longer in control." ABC/AFP

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store