News Brief
Cambodia Seeks Ceasefire, Thailand Open To Talks Via Malaysia After Deadly Border Clash
Hindu Temple Preah Vihear (Representative Image)
Cambodia has sought an “immediate ceasefire” with Thailand after two days of intense cross-border fighting, its UN envoy said on Friday (25 July), as Thailand also indicated willingness to negotiate.
Fighting involving jets, tanks, and artillery flared on Thursday (24 July), reigniting a long-standing border conflict between the two countries.
The UN Security Council met in emergency session Friday, where Cambodia’s UN envoy Chhea Keo called for an unconditional ceasefire and a peaceful resolution.
Thailand’s Health Ministry reported over 138,000 evacuations from its border regions, with 15 dead — including 14 civilians — and 46 others injured, among them 15 military personnel.
Hostilities resumed early Friday at three sites, the Thai army said, as Cambodian troops launched artillery and BM-21 rockets, prompting retaliatory fire from Thai forces.
By Friday afternoon, Thai officials said clashes had subsided.
Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Nikorndej Balankura stated Bangkok was open to diplomacy possibly aided by Malaysia.
“We are ready, if Cambodia would like to settle this matter via diplomatic channels, bilaterally, or even through Malaysia, we are ready to do that. But so far we have not had any response,” Nikorndej was quoted as saying by news agency AFP ahead of the UN meeting.
Malaysia, currently chairing ASEAN — which includes both Cambodia and Thailand — could play a mediating role.
Thailand’s acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai warned earlier that further escalation could risk triggering all-out war.
He noted, however, that “for now, it remains limited to clashes,” during a briefing in Bangkok.
Amid mutual accusations over who struck first, Thailand alleged Cambodia hit civilian sites — including a hospital and petrol station — with rockets and artillery.
Cambodia’s envoy at UN disputed Thailand’s claim that Phnom Penh started the conflict, citing the military imbalance between the two nations.
“(The Security Council) called for both parties to (show) maximum restraint and resort to a diplomatic solution. That is what we are calling for as well,” said Cambodian UN Envoy Chhea.
The clash, which erupted in the contested Emerald Triangle region where the borders of Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos converge, claimed the life of at least one civilian.
At the heart of the confrontation lies a long-standing disagreement over historical claims to several temple sites nestled within the border zone—an area rich in cultural heritage and nationalist symbolism for both nations.
The latest flashpoint came in May, when a Cambodian soldier was killed during a brief exchange of gunfire in a contested area.
The clash has reignited nationalist rhetoric in both countries, especially around the 11th-century Preah Vihear Hindu temple, a UNESCO World Heritage site, and the lesser-known but symbolically potent Ta Moan Thom temple, The Independent reported.
Preah Vihear, known as Khao Phra Viharn in Thailand, has long been at the centre of the dispute.
Although the International Court of Justice (ICJ) awarded the temple to Cambodia in 1962, Thailand has continued to claim the land surrounding it.
Tensions escalated again in 2008 after Cambodia sought UNESCO recognition for the site, resulting in years of sporadic clashes and a dozen deaths.
The ICJ ruled again in 2013, confirming Cambodia’s sovereignty over the temple and adjacent land, but Thailand has not fully accepted the verdict.
Prasat Ta Muen Thom, a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, was built during the reign of Khmer king Udayadityavarman II and lies in the Dangrek mountains along the ancient Khmer highway.
Dating back to the Khmer Empire (9th–15th centuries), the temple complex occupies a strategic mountain pass connecting Angkor in Cambodia to Phimai in Thailand, and includes at least two other ancient shrines.
Cambodia claims the temple based on the historical boundaries of the Khmer Empire, which once encompassed present-day Cambodia and parts of Thailand.
However, Thailand maintains that the site lies within its Surin province.
