BY EMMANUEL OGBONNA
Thailand and Cambodia signed a ceasefire agreement on Saturday aimed at ending weeks of intense fighting along their disputed border, a conflict driven by long-running territorial claims that has killed dozens, displaced hundreds of thousands of civilians and repeatedly threatened to spiral into a wider regional crisis.
The ceasefire took effect at noon local time and calls for an immediate halt to military movements, as well as a ban on the use of airspace for military purposes. The agreement was concluded after several days of negotiations and followed renewed clashes that had continued despite earlier attempts to restore calm.
Cambodian officials said Thailand had carried out airstrikes in recent days, including strikes early Saturday, making Thailand the only side to have used aircraft in the conflict. Bangkok has said its actions were defensive and necessary to protect its forces and territory.
Under the terms of the deal, Thailand agreed to repatriate 18 Cambodian soldiers captured during earlier fighting in July, once the ceasefire has held for at least 72 hours. Their release has been one of Phnom Penh’s key demands and a major sticking point in previous negotiations.
The agreement was formally signed at a border checkpoint by the two countries’ defense ministers, Cambodia’s Tea Seiha and Thailand’s Nattaphon Narkphanit, following three days of lower-level talks between military officials. In the text, both sides reaffirmed their commitment to a ceasefire reached in July that halted five days of fighting, as well as subsequent follow-up arrangements.
That earlier truce was brokered by Malaysia and reinforced through diplomatic pressure from the United States, with Washington warning that trade privileges could be at risk unless both sides agreed to de-escalate. The July agreement was later expanded and clarified at a regional meeting in Malaysia in October, though implementation remained uneven.
Despite those commitments, relations between Thailand and Cambodia continued to deteriorate. A sustained propaganda war, sporadic cross-border incidents and mutual accusations eventually escalated in early December into heavy fighting involving artillery, airstrikes and ground clashes along multiple stretches of the frontier.
Within hours of Saturday’s signing, the fragility of the ceasefire was underscored when Thailand’s Foreign Ministry lodged a formal protest with Cambodia, saying a Thai soldier had suffered permanent disability after stepping on an anti-personnel land mine allegedly laid by Cambodian forces. The incident immediately reignited tensions and highlighted one of the most contentious issues in the conflict.
The agreement includes provisions requiring both sides to adhere to international conventions banning the deployment of land mines, a matter of particular concern to Thailand. Thai authorities say at least 10 incidents this year have seen soldiers wounded by what they describe as newly planted Cambodian mines. Cambodia has rejected those claims, insisting the mines are remnants from decades of civil war that ended in the late 1990s.
Following the latest injury, Thailand’s Foreign Ministry said the ceasefire text contains key commitments to joint humanitarian demining operations, aimed at protecting both military personnel and civilians living in border areas as soon as conditions allow.
The deal also obliges both sides to refrain from spreading false information or disinformation, a clause intended to cool the heated rhetoric that has accompanied the fighting and fueled public anger in both countries.
Civilian communities have borne the brunt of the violence. Thai officials say 26 soldiers and one civilian have been killed directly in combat since early December, with an additional 44 civilian deaths reported. Cambodia has not released official figures for military casualties but says at least 30 civilians have been killed and 90 wounded. Entire villages have been evacuated on both sides of the border, forcing hundreds of thousands of people from their homes.
Speaking after the signing, Cambodian Defense Minister Tea Seiha said the ceasefire was essential to allow displaced civilians to begin rebuilding their lives. He said it would pave the way for families to return home, resume farming and send children back to school after weeks of disruption and fear.
Both governments continue to blame the other for starting the fighting, each insisting it acted in self-defense in response to provocations across the border.
Beyond security measures, the agreement calls for the resumption of long-stalled efforts to demarcate the border and for closer cooperation against transnational crime. That provision largely refers to online scam networks that operate across the region and have defrauded victims worldwide of billions of dollars, with Cambodia identified by several governments as a major hub for such criminal operations.
Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who played a central role in brokering earlier ceasefires, welcomed Saturday’s agreement, saying it reflected a shared recognition that restraint was essential, especially to protect civilians caught in the crossfire.
Still, doubts remain about whether the ceasefire will hold. Similar provisions appeared in the October agreement but were interpreted differently by each side and only partially implemented, particularly those concerning land mines and the fate of captured soldiers.
Those concerns were echoed by Thailand’s Defense Ministry shortly after the signing. A spokesperson said the safe return of displaced civilians would be a key indicator that the security situation had genuinely stabilized and that the release of Cambodian prisoners could proceed.
“If the ceasefire does not materialize, this would indicate a lack of sincerity on the Cambodian side to create real peace,” the spokesperson said, stressing that the 72-hour period outlined in the agreement should be seen as a test of whether hostilities truly end, rather than an unconditional act of trust.
As guns fall silent for now, the agreement offers a narrow window for diplomacy to succeed, but events on the ground suggest the path to lasting peace along the Thai-Cambodian border remains uncertain.
Original article
Comments