Cambodia and Thai leaders to meet in Malaysia for talks to end deadly border dispute
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and acting Thai Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai departed for Kuala Lumpur earlier on Monday. Malaysia is the current ASEAN chair.
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CNA
an hour ago
- CNA
Evacuees cautiously welcome Thai-Cambodia truce, brace for return to uncertainty
SURIN, THAILAND: Thai evacuees welcomed news of a ceasefire with Cambodia on Monday (Jul 28) with a mix of relief and scepticism, as the midnight truce loomed after five days of deadly cross-border fighting. 'I'd be so happy if the ceasefire really happens,' said Jeanjana Phaphan, a 48-year-old farmer who fled her home in Phanom Dong Rak district with her three-year-old son. 'If it's truly ending, I'm overjoyed, the happiest I've felt in a long time,' she said at a shelter in Surin city, about 50km from the border. Thailand and Cambodia agreed to an 'unconditional' ceasefire, following combat that killed at least 38 people and displaced nearly 300,000. The fighting erupted last Thursday along the jungle-clad frontier, a region long disputed and dotted with ancient temples. The agreement, brokered in Malaysia by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, came after mediation efforts by US President Donald Trump and Chinese negotiators. VOICES OF RELIEF AND DOUBT Jeanjana, like many others, reacted to the ceasefire news with cautious optimism. 'If our two countries keep fighting, the hardship and loss will only grow,' she said. 'People on that side are civilians too, just like us. On our side we're just farmers — and I believe they are farmers like us too. Ordinary people working to survive.' But not everyone was confident in the ceasefire's durability. 'I still have doubts that Cambodia will follow through with what they agreed to,' said Tee Samanjai, a 68-year-old farmer who had also evacuated. 'We may go home, but with unease. There's no peace of mind. I want to go back, but I don't trust Cambodia at all. No one in our village does.' For Tee, returning home means tending to life's basics. 'The first thing I'll do when I get home is check on the chickens, fertilise the rice, and take care of the fields,' he said. ACROSS THE BORDER In Cambodia, similar concerns echoed from villagers displaced by the conflict. At a temple shelter in Phumi Bak Thkav, 55-year-old farmer Say Yoeun said he longed to return home. 'I am not happy to stay somewhere like this,' he said. 'I miss my home and livestock — and I cannot take care of my paddy field.' Cambodian and Thai military commanders are scheduled to meet on Tuesday morning if the truce holds. Only then will villagers be allowed to return and assess the damage to their homes and farmland. 'A MINIMUM FIRST STEP' Kavindhra Tiamsai, a 33-year-old Thai who helped evacuate her mother from the conflict zone, said the fighting highlighted how people living in rural border areas are often neglected by their governments. 'A ceasefire is a good option but also the minimum,' she said. 'What we need is a comprehensive, grounded plan that speaks to the realities of rural life — one that doesn't assume evacuation is easy or even possible when most families have no transport, no money to buffer, and no safety net to lean on.'
Straits Times
3 hours ago
- Straits Times
Italy expects to clear Sicily bridge project next week
FILE PHOTO: A view shows the Strait of Messina where a government project to build a bridge to connect the Italian mainland to the island of Sicily has been in the planning stages for years, as seen from the small village of Cannitello, Italy, January 2, 2025. REUTERS/Daniele Mascolo/File Photo ROME - The Italian government is expected to give the green light for a multibillion-euro bridge between Sicily and the mainland next week, paving the way for construction work to finally start on the long-awaited project, a source said on Monday. The source, who asked not to be named, said the meeting of the CIPESS economic planning committee to approve the bridge had yet to be scheduled but was expected to take place by August 7. A stable connection across the Strait of Messina has been talked about since Roman times, but the project appeared to have been killed off for good in 2013, when the company created to oversee its construction was closed down in a government austerity drive. It was resuscitated under Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who set aside 13.5 billion euros ($15.7 billion) to build a suspension bridge 3.6 kilometres (2.2 miles) long between the Sicilian city of Messina and the Calabria region. According to the Messina Strait company, which oversees the project, approval from CIPESS will pave the way for preliminary works such as land expropriations, and archaeological and geological surveys. A consortium led by Italy's Webuild is responsible for the construction, which is scheduled for completion in 2032, more than 60 years after the country organised an international contest to receive proposals for the bridge. "There is a lot of attention around the world, everyone is looking at the Messina Bridge, and asking us about it," WeBuild CEO Pietro Salini said last week presenting the group's financial results for the first half of the year. REUTERS Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Asia Cambodia, Thailand agree to 'immediate and unconditional ceasefire' to de-escalate border row Asia Truce between Cambodia and Thailand secured under Asean chair Malaysia, but can it hold? Singapore Tanjong Katong sinkhole: BCA to conduct independent probe, act against any non-compliance Singapore Foreign workers who rescued woman from sinkhole given tokens of appreciation Asia Gunman kills 5 near Bangkok's Chatuchak market before taking own life Business SIA Q1 profit falls 59%; airline group sees volatile times ahead Singapore Man exposed daughter's identity despite court order after she was removed from his care Singapore Over 6 years' jail for conman who cheated 13 victims of more than $1.2m
Straits Times
4 hours ago
- Straits Times
Marcos gets tough on budget, corruption in bid to reset presidency
MANILA – Bruised by the May midterm election and shadowed by a stalled impeachment trial against his erstwhile ally Vice-President Sara Duterte, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr used his fourth State of the Nation Address to project strength and reclaim authority amid growing doubts over his leadership. Breaking from his run-of-the-mill speeches in the last three years, Mr Marcos on July 28 laid out a series of populist promises aimed at improving welfare and infrastructure programmes for ordinary Filipinos: Free dialysis at state-run health centres, payment of teachers' unpaid overtime salaries, electricity and water supplies in far-flung areas, and expanded transport services for key urban centres were among the initiatives mooted. But the most pointed moment in the speech came at the end, when Mr Marcos warned lawmakers against tampering with his proposed 6.793 trillion peso (S$152.5 billion) budget for fiscal year 2026. He also vowed to crack down on corruption and investigate anomalous flood control projects that have long been seen by some quarters as sources of 'pork barrel' or discretionary funds. 'Pork barrel funds' refer to government funds allocated to local projects deemed to benefit a particular constituency or interest group, and are often at the discretion of individual legislators or the executive branch. These funds are frequently associated with political patronage. 'To those conspiring to steal public funds and rob our people of their future, have some shame! Have some shame for the families whose homes were swept away in floods. Have some shame for the children who will inherit the debts you created, the money you pocketed for yourselves,' Mr Marcos said. Analysts told The Straits Times that Mr Marcos' tone was deliberate, with the president recognising his administration's vulnerabilities and attempting to posit himself as a leader willing to wield power more decisively. 'The budget, as devised by Marcos and his team, is their way of delivering those big promises that he made in his address,' said Mr Michael Yusingco, senior research fellow at the Manila-based Ateneo Policy Centre. 'So this is a very powerful message because he's saying: 'I am in control now. This is the budget that I want''. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Asia Cambodia, Thailand agree to 'immediate and unconditional ceasefire' to de-escalate border row Asia Truce between Cambodia and Thailand secured under Asean chair Malaysia, but can it hold? Singapore Tanjong Katong sinkhole: BCA to conduct independent probe, act against any non-compliance Singapore Foreign workers who rescued woman from sinkhole given tokens of appreciation Asia Gunman kills 5 near Bangkok's Chatuchak market before taking own life Business SIA's first-quarter profits fall by 59%; airline group sees volatile times ahead Singapore COE quota up 2.6% to 18,701 for August-October period Singapore Over 6 years' jail for conman who cheated 13 victims of more than $1.2m Mr Marcos' approval ratings dropped to their lowest levels at the height of the midterm election season, which saw the allies of Ms Duterte and opposition figures outnumbering the Marcos-backed candidates in the Senate race. His Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas camp won only six of the 12 contested Senate seats – while Ms Duterte not only retained formidable public support but also emerged as the pivotal power broker amid ongoing impeachment proceedings. Analysts say this was a 'protest vote' in response to the Marcos government's failure to deliver basic services, something the president himself acknowledged at the start of his annual speech to Congress. 'This is Marcos going on accountability mode… He is hitting on the kind of business-as-usual politics riddled with corruption and kickbacks,' said Dr Aries Arugay, visiting senior fellow at Singapore's ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute and head of the University of the Philippines' political science department. 'Finally, he is showing the big stick that he possesses as president'. Dr Arugay and Mr Yusingco say that Mr Marcos' decision to go big on populist messaging isn't just about rallying public support but also aimed at putting pressure on lawmakers who may be hedging their bets ahead of the 2028 presidential race, where early surveys show Ms Duterte as the leading contender. A case in point is Mr Marcos' vow to audit flood control projects. Long linked to congressional corruption, his firm stance on these projects drew a standing ovation from lawmakers when the president warned of prosecutions in his speech. 'It is the lawmakers, the political dynasties themselves who are profiting from these flood control projects. So is this a veiled warning to them?' mused Mr Yusingco. Mr Marcos is expected to appoint a new Ombudsman in the coming weeks, to be tasked with going after errant politicians. Dr Arugay believes the appointment will be a 'litmus' test of whether the president's anti-corruption push is genuine, saying: 'Will the Ombudsman chase Marcos allies or only those deemed as enemies of the president? His (the president's) accountability campaign will only be genuine and sincere if even people who are not his political enemies will be held accountable.' The continued friction between the Marcos and Dutertes remains a destabilising factor to the president's agenda in the last three years of his single six-year term, which ends in 2028. On July 25, the Supreme Court ruled that the articles of impeachment sent by the Marcos-dominated House of Representatives to the Senate were unconstitutional, citing the one-year ban on filing multiple impeachment complaints against the same official. It remains unclear whether the Senate will follow the ruling or proceed to convene as an impeachment court to try the country's vice-president for alleged impeachable offences. The court said it was not absolving Ms Duterte of the charges she faces. But the ruling means she has been granted a reprieve from possible ousting, at least until February 2026. Dr Arugay noted: 'We cannot avoid that possibility... If the Senate and the House heed the Supreme Court, we will go back to square one of the impeachment process. And therefore, the attention of the country will be on that again instead of (Marcos' policy agenda).' For now, Mr Marcos' strategy appears to be twofold: Win over the public with social spending, and pressure Congress into submission. But Mr Yusingco said that the President's biggest hurdle is not the opposition, but the entrenched dynasties within his own coalition. 'The Speaker of the House (Martin Romualdez) is his cousin. But the House Speaker also made promises to the lawmakers. So there's going to be a lot of horse-trading,' he said. What remains to be seen is whether Mr Marcos will follow through on the tough talk. In his first three years, the president was often criticised for being aloof and reactive instead of proactive, particularly on domestic governance issues. In his latest speech, he attempted to reframe that narrative. 'Mr Marcos doesn't seem to have the credibility (that he can go hard against corruption),' said Dr Arugay. 'He needs to stand his ground... This is unchartered terrain for him'.
