Thailand launches air strikes on Cambodia, leaving peace accord on brink of collapse
Sign up now: Get insights on Asia's fast-moving developments
An injured Thai soldier being transferred to a hospital after a clash between Thai and Cambodian troops over the border dispute at Si Sa Ket province.
PHOTO: EPA
Follow topic:
- Thailand launched air strikes into Cambodia on Dec 8, escalating tensions and jeopardising a peace accord brokered in October.
- Both countries trade blame, accusing each other of provocation; Thailand calls for accountability for landmines in disputed border areas.
- PM Anutin dismisses idea of immediate negotiations with Cambodia. His strong stance reflects a need to be seen to be tough ahead of Thai elections, expected to be called early in 2026.
AI generated
BANGKOK – Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul dismissed the possibility of immediate negotiations after Thailand launched air strikes on Cambodia on Dec 8, as a sharp escalation of border tensions between the two neighbours left a peace accord brokered by US President Donald Trump on the brink of collapse.
Both countries accused the other of provocation and for being responsible for renewing deadly border skirmishes in the early hours of Dec 8.
Cambodian Information Minister Neth Pheaktra said Thailand’s military attacks killed at least four Cambodian civilians and injured nine others. He accused Bangkok of “widespread dissemination of false and fabricated information”. Cambodia’s Defence Ministry said the Thai military had launched dawn attacks on its forces at two locations, following days of “provocative actions”, and that Cambodian troops had not retaliated.
The warring rhetoric, now matched by a ratcheting up of hostilities on the ground, underlines the deep-seated division and distrust between the two South-east Asian neighbours,
It also marks a major departure from when the two countries signed a joint declaration to work towards peace on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur on Oct 26, which was presided over by Mr Trump and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. The pact came after a five-day border conflict in July that claimed at least 48 lives and displaced more than 300,000 civilians.
Thailand suspended the peace deal on Nov 11 after accusing Cambodia of planting fresh landmines along their disputed border which had maimed Thai soldiers – claims that Phnom Penh denies.
“All the ceasefire and the peace accord in KL did was put a lid on a simmering dispute, and it hasn’t actually addressed the underlying lack of trust and the underlying dispute that exists between the two countries,” said Ms Susannah Patton, director of the South-east Asia Programme at the Lowy Institute. “So, in some ways, it is not surprising that it is flaring up again now.”
In a statement on social media on Dec 8, Datuk Seri Anwar reiterated Malaysia’s preparedness to help restore calm.
“The renewed fighting risks unravelling the careful work that has gone into stabilising relations between the two neighbours,” he said. “Our region cannot afford to see longstanding disputes slip into cycles of confrontation.”
But in stressing that Thailand reserved the right to defend its sovereignty on its own terms, Mr Anutin appeared to dismiss the possibility of immediate negotiations with Cambodia, suggesting that he would no longer countenance mediation from third countries.
“With what they have done to us, there will not be any negotiations,” he told reporters in Bangkok. “If Cambodia wants the fighting to stop, it will need to comply with our demands.”
Key demands by Bangkok for a resolution to the conflict include accountability for recently laid landmines that have injured Thai soldiers, which Phnom Penh maintains are remnants from past conflicts, and resolute cooperation on mine clearance in disputed border areas.
When asked whether he had spoken to Mr Anwar or Mr Trump, Mr Anutin said: “No. This is a bilateral issue.”
Mr Anutin’s increasingly hardline posture against Cambodia reflects a need to be seen to be tough ahead of the Thai general election, expected to be called early in 2026. His new administration’s standing – after an initial honeymoon period – has taken a beating over perceived high-level links to scam syndicates
Mr Anutin was installed as Thai prime minister leaked phone call
Unburdening the longstanding political baggage and personal enmity, particularly between Mr Hun Sen and Ms Paetongtarn’s father, Mr Thaksin Shinawatra, the change in Thai government to an Anutin premiership was seen as a potential catalyst for military tensions to de-escalate between the two neighbours.
Despite the early promise, the Kuala Lumpur peace accord was in place for barely three weeks before it was suspended due to the landmine accusations levelled against Cambodia. Mr Anutin had said then that he would prioritise national interests and the safety of Thai people over the fate of US trade talks tied to the agreement.
There are also signs that things have quickly become personal for Mr Hun Sen, who is currently president of the Cambodian Senate.
In a post on his official Facebook page on Dec 8, he accused Mr Anutin of risking the lives of soldiers and civilians by waging war on Cambodia for his own political ambitions, and urged the Cambodian forces to exercise restraint in the face of what he described as Thai military aggression. Mr Hun Sen attached photos of Mr Anutin on an earlier trip to Cambodia, in an echo of his previous posts targeting the Shinawatras.
Since the suspension of the peace deal, Thailand and Cambodia have continued to trade accusations, with tensions ultimately bubbling over on Dec 8.
Thai army spokesman Winthai Suvaree said the latest strikes were necessary as military intelligence suggested that Cambodian forces were massing additional troops and had deployed long-range weapons capable of threatening a Thai commercial airport and areas near a hospital.
Major-General Winthai said Thailand had destroyed a casino used as Cambodia’s drone control station and had also targeted other military installations such as rocket bases.
“Thailand was left with no choice but to act in self-defence after observing continued Cambodian attacks against Thai forces,” he said. “Cambodia has a history of repeatedly violating ceasefire agreements.”
In response, Cambodian Defence Ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata rejected Thai reports that Cambodia had moved heavy weapons along the shared border.
“Cambodian forces have not taken any action that violated the ceasefire agreement and joint peace statement between Cambodia and Thailand,” she said.
With fresh casualties and heated rhetoric increasingly narrowing the diplomatic off-ramp for both sides, the question is whether Mr Trump, who claimed credit for the previous ceasefire, would now look to intervene.
“Previously, Trump has been quick to get on the phone and threaten the prime ministers of Thailand and Cambodia with higher tariffs,” Lowy Institute’s Ms Patton said. “Whether or not he does that again... We’ll just have to wait and see.”
