Latest news with #Lancang-MekongCooperationForeignMinisters'Meeting
The Star
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Star
China calls for peace at border
THE republic urged Cambodia and Thailand to continue efforts towards restoring a lasting peace at their border as soon as possible, a Chinese foreign ministry statement said, as it summarised an earlier trilateral meeting. In the statement, China reiterated its support for the South-East Asia nations to achieve a sustainable ceasefire after the worst clashes in their long-running border dispute in more than a decade. China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi met his Thai and Cambodian counterparts on Thursday for a discussion on the sidelines of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Foreign Ministers' Meeting in the southwestern Yunnan province. At the regional meeting, Wang proposed deepening cooperation in agriculture, water resources and environmental governance as well as in new fields such as energy storage, electric vehicles and photovoltaics He also spoke about greater law enforcement cooperation including setting up a platform for the protection of overseas citizens, without specifying which nationalities, and working together to tackle cross-border crime. The meeting also discussed establishing a legal and judicial exchange and cooperation mechanism as soon as possible, the Chinese ministry readouts showed. Separately, Wang had an informal meeting with his counterparts from Thailand, Myanmar and Laos on Friday, in which he said China hoped that Myanmar would hold a fair election and restore stability. Myanmar's military this month nominally transferred power to a civilian-led interim administration to conduct an election in December and January, four years after it removed the elected civilian government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi from office and sparked a civil war. Describing the regional security situation as 'not optimistic', the Chinese minister reinforced a message of strengthening joint operations for border control, according to one of the statements. — Reuters
The Star
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Star
China urges Cambodia and Thailand to restore peace at the border
BEIJING (Reuters): China urged Cambodia and Thailand to continue efforts towards restoring a lasting peace at their border as soon as possible, a Chinese foreign ministry statement said on Friday as it summarised an earlier trilateral meeting. In the statement, China reiterated its support for the Southeast Asia nations to achieve a sustainable ceasefire after the worst clashes in their long-running border dispute in more than a decade. China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi met his Thai and Cambodian counterparts on Thursday for a discussion on the sidelines of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Foreign Ministers' Meeting in China's southwestern Yunnan province. At the regional meeting, Wang proposed deepening cooperation in agriculture, water resources, environmental governance as well as in new fields such as energy storage, electric vehicles and photovoltaics. He also spoke about greater law enforcement cooperation including setting up a platform for the protection of overseas citizens, without specifying which nationalities, and working together to tackle cross-border crime. The meeting also discussed establishing a legal and judicial exchange and cooperation mechanism as soon as possible, the Chinese ministry readouts showed. Separately, Wang had an informal meeting with his counterparts from Thailand, Myanmar and Laos on Friday, at which he said China hoped that Myanmar would hold a fair election and restore stability. Myanmar's military this month nominally transferred power to a civilian-led interim administration to conduct an election in December and January, four years after it removed the elected civilian government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi from office, sparking a civil war. Describing the regional security situation as "not optimistic", the Chinese minister reinforced a message of strengthening joint operations for border control, according to one of the statements. (Reporting by Liz Lee and Beijing newsroom; Editing by Hugh Lawson and Kate Mayberry) - Reuters
Reuters
4 days ago
- Politics
- Reuters
China urges Cambodia, Thailand to restore peace at border
BEIJING, Aug 15 (Reuters) - China urged Cambodia and Thailand to continue efforts towards restoring a lasting peace at their border as soon as possible, a Chinese foreign ministry statement said on Friday as it summarised an earlier trilateral meeting. In the statement, China reiterated its support for the Southeast Asia nations to achieve a sustainable ceasefire after the worst clashes in their long-running border dispute in more than a decade. China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi met his Thai and Cambodian counterparts on Thursday for a discussion on the sidelines of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Foreign Ministers' Meeting in China's southwestern Yunnan province. At the regional meeting, Wang proposed deepening cooperation in agriculture, water resources, environmental governance as well as in new fields such as energy storage, electric vehicles and photovoltaics. He also spoke about greater law enforcement cooperation including setting up a platform for the protection of overseas citizens, without specifying which nationalities, and working together to tackle cross-border crime. The meeting also discussed establishing a legal and judicial exchange and cooperation mechanism as soon as possible, the Chinese ministry readouts showed. Separately, Wang had an informal meeting with his counterparts from Thailand, Myanmar and Laos on Friday, at which he said China hoped that Myanmar would hold a fair election and restore stability. Myanmar's military this month nominally transferred power to a civilian-led interim administration to conduct an election in December and January, opens new tab, four years after it removed the elected civilian government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi from office, sparking a civil war. Describing the regional security situation as "not optimistic", the Chinese minister reinforced a message of strengthening joint operations for border control, according to one of the statements.
The Diplomat
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Diplomat
China Calls on Cambodia and Thailand to Resolve Border Conflict
China stands ready to help Thailand and Cambodia resolve their bitter border dispute, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said yesterday, after convening a three-way meeting with the countries' foreign ministers in Yunnan province. The meeting between Wang, Thai Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa, and Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn took place on the sidelines of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Anning, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The three envoys 'had a friendly and candid communication over the conflict along the border between Cambodia and Thailand in a harmonious atmosphere,' and they 'agreed to keep communication channels open through a flexible approach,' the statement said, as per China Daily. The Foreign Ministry also said that Wang held separate one-on-one meetings with Maris and Sokhonn, which covered the border dispute as well as other issues of bilateral concern. On July 28, Cambodia and Thailand agreed to a ceasefire that ended five days of fierce fighting, which killed at least 43 people and displaced more than 300,000 on both sides of the border. The two sides followed this up with a meeting of their bilateral General Border Committee in Malaysia on August 7, at which they agreed to a number of means of de-escalating tensions. Among these were mutual pledges to freeze border troop movements and patrols, not to reinforce their positions along the border, and 'not to undertake provocative actions that may escalate tensions.' However, the situation remains febrile, with both nations trading near-daily accusations of ceasefire violations, often with reference to territorial claims that are not internationally recognized. Wang said that China 'supports Cambodia and Thailand in engaging in dialogue, clearing misunderstandings, rebuilding mutual trust and restoring normal exchanges and cooperation,' the China Daily reported. China also promised support and assistance for landmine clearance in the border areas of Cambodia and Thailand, and the three ministers agreed to continue communication in a 'flexible manner.' Beijing also hoped for the stabilization of relations between the two nations and the reopening of border crossings as soon as possible, Wang said. Chinese officials have been present as observers at the recent bilateral talks, along with their American counterparts, and China's Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong hosted an informal trilateral meeting with representatives from both nations in Shanghai on July 30. During the meeting, both Cambodia and Thailand 'reaffirmed their commitment to the ceasefire consensus and expressed appreciation for China's positive role in de-escalating the situation,' the Global Times reported. Yesterday's meetings could signal a Chinese desire to play a more active role in mediating the conflict. Despite enjoying good relations with both Thailand and Cambodia, China has been somewhat upstaged in this respect by the United States. President Donald Trump was widely credited with pushing Thailand and Cambodia to agree to the initial ceasefire on July 28 by threatening to withhold tariff deals if they did not cease hostilities. (Cambodia later nominated Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of his role.) However, since securing relatively competitive 'final' tariffs of 19 percent, the two nations have continued to spar over the border issues, making a return to hostilities a very real prospect. In any event, the mistrust between the Thai and Cambodian governments remains at such a high pitch, and the issue has now become an issue of such salience to domestic politics in both nations that Beijing will have to do a lot more to reverse the deterioration of the relationship that has taken place over the past few months.
The Hindu
4 days ago
- Business
- The Hindu
China urges Thailand, Cambodia reconciliation in three-way talks
China expressed support for Thailand and Cambodia in resolving their border dispute on Thursday (August 14, 2025) and offered to provide assistance based on the wishes of both nations, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said. Mr. Wang said China supports the Southeast Asian countries in strengthening dialogue and eliminating misunderstandings, adding he hoped they would rebuild mutual trust and restore friendship, according to statements from his Ministry. He met his Thai and Cambodian counterparts separately during the day but also convened a three-way conversation on the sidelines of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Foreign Ministers' Meeting in China's southwestern Yunnan province, readouts of the three meetings showed. In their "friendly and candid communication", Mr. Wang said China hoped that the two countries could reopen border crossings as soon as possible, a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement said. China also promised support and assistance for landmine clearance in the border areas of Cambodia and Thailand, and the three ministers agreed to continue communication in a "flexible manner", the Chinese statement added. Thailand and Cambodia have wrangled for decades over border territory and a border conflict erupted last month after the killing of a Cambodian soldier in a skirmish late in May. It was the worst fighting in more than a decade and only eased after a ceasefire was struck in late July. In a bilateral meeting with Thailand's Maris, Mr. Wang spoke about China's readiness to accelerate a China-Thailand railway construction project, encourage more investments from Chinese enterprises in Thailand and ensure the stability of the regional production and supply chain. It is hoped that Thailand will provide more policy support and facilitation for Chinese enterprises, he told his Thai counterpart. While meeting with Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn, Mr. Wang sounded support for Cambodia maintaining political stability, and said China is appreciative of the country's crackdown on online gambling and wire fraud. He also expressed hopes that Cambodia will continue strong measures for joint efforts in the region against cross-border criminal activities.
