Thailand on Monday announced it was suspending a peace deal with Cambodia after a landmine exploded near their shared border, reportedly injuring several soldiers.
Why It Matters
A long-standing border dispute between the two countries erupted into five days of fighting in July, resulting in 43 deaths and displacing more than 300,000 people.
President Donald Trump took credit for brokering the subsequent ceasefire, saying he threatened to halt trade negotiations if the conflict continued. A deal was reached two days later in Malaysia, with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet nominating Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize—a prize that was ultimately awarded to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado.
Newsweek reached out to the Thai and Cambodian defense ministries and to the White House via emailed requests for response.
What To Know
Thailand’s army announced the suspension to the patchy ceasefire, saying a soldier had stepped on a landmine at around 9:30 a.m. Monday while patrolling near a base in Kantharalak district, Sisaket province, near the Cambodian border.
Initially, two soldiers were reported injured, by the Thai military. One was said to have a fractured ankle and one had “chest tightness from compression.” The Bangkok Post reported that another soldier had suffered an eye injury and a fourth had sustained shrapnel wounds to his right calf, as well as stating that one of the other soldiers had lost a foot.
This marks the seventh landmine incident involving Thai soldiers since the border conflict in July. The number of Thai troops injured by landmines has now risen to 18, with the most recent previous injury in August resulting in a soldier losing his foot.
Defence Minister Nattaphon Narkphanit said the latest blast occurred in an area where Thai forces had been pushing Cambodian troops out. Nattaphon said an investigation was ongoing into whether the mine had been newly placed.
The short-lived border war is one of eight conflicts that Trump claims to have helped end during his second term.
What People Are Saying
Cambodia Prime Minister Hun Manet wrote in his nomination letter to the Norwegian Nobel Committee, shared to Facebook on August 7: “This timely intervention, which averted a potentially devastating conflict, was vital in preventing great loss of life and paved the way for the restoration of peace between the two countries.”
Secretary of State of the Cambodian Secretary of the Ministry of National Defense Rath Dararoth issued a statement Monday “reaffirming Cambodia’s unwavering commitment to transforming the Cambodian-Thailand border into a zone of peace, friendship, and cooperation, in full respect of international law and in the spirit and principles of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations).
What Happens Next
Cambodian officials had not responded to Thailand’s announcement as of press time.
Nattaphon said Bangkok would be issuing a letter of protest to Phnom Penh, and that the return of 18 Cambodian troops captured during the July clashes would be delayed as a result.
