Latest news with #border clashes
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Thailand accuses Cambodia of violating hours-old ceasefire
Thailand has accused Cambodia of "deliberately" violating a ceasefire the two countries agreed on Monday to end border clashes that have killed at least 33 people and displaced thousands. It's a shaky start for the ceasefire, which is aimed at bringing an end to five days of bombardment and rocket attacks along their shared border. The Thai military says it stopped firing after midnight, but that it continued to receive gunfire from the Cambodian side "at multiple locations" up until this morning. But Cambodia's defence ministry told the AFP news agency that there had been "no armed clashes" between the two sides since the ceasefire began at midnight. Despite the accusations, meetings between local commanders from both sides took place earlier on Tuesday as part of the ceasefire agreement. They agreed to stop shooting and halt the movement of troops on the frontline. They will also allow each other to collect their dead. Tensions between the South East Asian countries over their century-old disputed border ramped up in May when a Cambodian soldier was killed in a clash. They escalated into a full-scale conflict last week after five Thai soldiers were injured in a landmine explosion. Thailand closed some of its border crossings, expelled the Cambodian ambassador and recalled its own from Phnom Penh. After the two sides exchanged gunfire early last Thursday, Cambodia fired multiple rockets into Thailand, killing several civilians. More civilians died on both sides in the following days, and tens of thousands more were evacuated to shelters. Intense exchanges of fire between the two armies continued up to midnight on Monday, the deadline for the ceasefire, with Thailand launching more air strikes on Cambodian positions. But on Tuesday morning, before Thailand alleged the ceasefire had been violated, Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Manet said that the "frontlines have eased" since midnight. Under the ceasefire agreement, both sides are meant to pull back their armies and accept some kind of independent monitoring to prevent further clashes. Hun Manet and his Thai counterpart Phumtham Wechayachai had met on Monday in Malaysia in a meeting brokered by its leader Anwar Ibrahim. An outgunned Cambodia had been pushing for a ceasefire and its leader called it a "very good meeting". Thailand, which had initially been reluctant to negotiate, agreed to the talks after US President Donald Trump threatened to halt negotiations over tariffs until Thailand and Cambodia stopped fighting. A dispute going back decades Relations between Thailand and Cambodia took a turn for the worse in 2008 when Cambodia tried to register an 11th Century temple located in the disputed area as a Unesco World Heritage Site - a move that was met with heated protest from Thailand. Over the years there have been sporadic clashes that have seen soldiers and civilians killed on both sides. When tensions ramped up in May, the relationship between the two countries hit its lowest point in more than a decade. In the past two months, both countries have imposed border restrictions on one another. Cambodia banned imports from Thailand such as fruits and vegetables, and stopped importing power and internet services. Both countries have also strengthened their troop presence along the border in recent weeks. Why are Thailand and Cambodia fighting at the border? Thailand and Cambodia agree to 'immediate ceasefire' The fractured friendship behind the fight at the Thailand-Cambodia border
NHK
2 days ago
- Politics
- NHK
Analysis: Thailand Cambodia agree to unconditional ceasefire
Thailand and Cambodia have agreed to a ceasefire following days of deadly border clashes. NHK World's Lim Ling Fong explains how they managed to reach the deal so fast.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Thailand accuses Cambodia of violating hours-old ceasefire
Thailand has accused Cambodia of "deliberately" violating a ceasefire the two countries had agreed on Monday to end border clashes that have killed at least 33 people and displaced thousands. It's a shaky start for the ceasefire, which was meant to bring an end to five days of bombardment and rocket attacks along the shared border. The Thai military says it stopped firing after midnight, but that it continued to receive gunfire from the Cambodian side "at multiple locations" up until this morning. But Cambodia's defence ministry told the AFP news agency there had been "no armed clashes" between the two sides since the ceasefire began at midnight. A meeting between local commanders which was part of the ceasefire agreement has been postponed twice, and may not happen at all. Tensions between the South East Asian countries over their century-old disputed border ramped up in May when a Cambodian soldier was killed in a clash. They escalated into a full-scale conflict last week after five Thai soldiers were injured in a landmine explosion. Thailand closed some of its border crossings, expelled the Cambodian ambassador and recalled its own from Phnom Penh. After the two sides exchanged gunfire early on Thursday, Cambodia fired multiple rockets into Thailand, killing several civilians. More civilians died on both sides in the following days, and tens of thousands more were evacuated to shelters. Intense exchanges of fire between the two armies continued up to midnight on Monday, the deadline for the ceasefire, with Thailand launching more air strikes on Cambodian positions. But on Tuesday morning, before Thailand alleged the ceasefire had been violated, Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Manet said that the "frontlines have eased" since midnight. Under the agreement, both sides had agreed to pull back their armies and to accept some kind of independent monitoring to prevent further clashes. Hun Manet and his Thai counterpart Phumtham Wechayachai had met on Monday in Malaysia in a meeting brokered by its leader Anwar Ibrahim. An outgunned Cambodia had been pushing for a ceasefire and its leader called it a very good meeting. Thailand, which had initially been reluctant to negotiate, agreed after US President Donald Trump threatened to halt talks over tariffs until Thailand and Cambodia stopped fighting. A dispute going back decades In fact, the argument between Thailand and Cambodia dates back more than a century, when the borders of the two nations were drawn after the French occupation of Cambodia. Things officially became hostile in 2008, when Cambodia tried to register an 11th Century temple located in the disputed area as a Unesco World Heritage Site - a move that was met with heated protest from Thailand. Over the years there have been sporadic clashes that have seen soldiers and civilians killed on both sides. The latest tensions ramped up in May after a Cambodian soldier was killed in a clash. This plunged bilateral ties to their lowest point in more than a decade. In the past two months, both countries have imposed border restrictions on one another. Cambodia banned imports from Thailand such as fruits and vegetables, and stopped importing power and internet services. Both countries have also strengthened troop presence along the border in recent weeks. Why are Thailand and Cambodia fighting at the border? Thailand and Cambodia agree to 'immediate ceasefire' The fractured friendship behind the fight at the Thailand-Cambodia border
South China Morning Post
2 days ago
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Thai, Cambodian militaries meet to finesse ceasefire amid claims of truce violations
The militaries of Thailand and Cambodia are scheduled to start negotiations at 10am local time even as small clashes erupted along the border after both sides agreed to a ceasefire at midnight on Monday. Advertisement Confirming the start of the military negotiations, Thailand's Acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai said on Tuesday that the border was calm now, according to Reuters. 'There is no escalation,' Phumtham told reporters. 'Right now things are calm.' 'The frontline has eased after a ceasefire took effect from Monday midnight in accordance with the spirit of the agreement between Cambodia and Thailand at a special meeting in Malaysia,' Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said in a post on his official social media platforms on Tuesday. 'A sooner cessation of hostilities will also allow affected people, such as evacuees, to return to their homes and resume normal livelihoods sooner. This ceasefire and peace agreement is yielding positive and effective results.' In the hours between midnight and the military meeting, Thailand's army had accused Cambodia of violating the truce, saying clashes were continuing along the 800km (500-mile) border. Evacuees inside a gym-turned refuge in Buriram, Thailand, on Monday. Photo: Xinhua 'At the time the agreement took effect, the Thai side detected that Cambodian forces had launched armed attacks into several areas within Thai territory,' Thai army spokesman Winthai Suwaree told Agence France-Presse.
Bloomberg
2 days ago
- Bloomberg
Thailand Accuses Cambodia of Breaching Truce Pushed by Trump
By and Patpicha Tanakasempipat Updated on Save Thailand's army accused Cambodian troops of violating an unconditional ceasefire, a claim contradicted by Phnom Penh, underscoring the challenges of enforcing the truce on the ground following five days of deadly border clashes. Attacks were reported from multiple locations into early Tuesday morning even though the ceasefire went into force at midnight, the Royal Thai Army spokesman Winthai Suvaree said in a statement, accusing Cambodia of provoking the incidents. He also blamed Cambodia of 'deliberate violation of the agreement and an intentional act to undermine mutual trust.'
