Thailand announced it was continuing its military operations against Cambodia, despite US President Donald Trump’s statements that the two neighboring countries had agreed to a ceasefire. Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said the country “will continue to carry out military actions until we consider that our territory and our people are no longer threatened.”
The resumption of clashes has entered its seventh day and has already left at least 20 dead. More than 500,000 residents of the border area have fled the region.
Thai military authorities confirmed “retaliatory attacks” against Cambodian targets late this Saturday morning (13). According to a spokesperson, Thai planes “successfully destroyed” two bridges in Cambodia, which he said were used to transport weapons to the battlefield.
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Thai planes “use high-precision weapons to avoid harming innocent civilians,” air force spokesman Chakrit Thammavichai said.
The conflict refers to an old dispute over the demarcation of the 800 kilometer borders, which dates back to colonial times. One country accuses the other of rekindling the conflict.
Conversation with Trump
The announcement of continued hostilities comes just hours after Donald Trump declared that Bangkok and Phnom Penh had agreed to a ceasefire.
“I had an excellent conversation this morning with Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet about the unfortunate resurgence of the long war between the two countries. They agreed to a ceasefire starting this evening and to return to the original peace agreement reached with me and them, with the help of the great Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim,” the American president wrote Friday evening on his social network Truth. “Both countries are ready for PEACE and the resumption of trade with the United States of America,” Trump added.
Shortly before, the Thai Prime Minister had declared, after the telephone call, that it was necessary to “announce to the world that Cambodia would respect the ceasefire”.
This morning, the Cambodian Ministry of Defense said on Channel X that “Thai armed forces used two F-16 fighter jets to drop seven bombs” on several targets. According to Information Minister Neth Pheaktra, Thailand “expanded its attacks on civilian infrastructure and Cambodian civilians.”
Who started it?
After an initial outbreak of violence in July, this week’s clashes between the two countries – members of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) – have further intensified.
“Cambodia has always adhered to peaceful means of resolving disputes,” Hun Manet said in a message posted on Facebook. He added that he had suggested that the United States and Malaysia use their intelligence resources “to verify which side opened fire first” on December 7.
“The one who violated the agreement must resolve the situation, and not the one who suffered the consequences,” Charnvirakul charged on Friday, as he dissolved the country’s Parliament in the midst of a political crisis. Elections are expected to take place in Thailand in early 2026.
In July, when hostilities resumed, 43 people died in five days, before a ceasefire was negotiated by the United States, China and Malaysia, which holds the rotating presidency of ASEAN.
Thailand and Cambodia dispute sovereignty over small strips of territory, where temples of the Khmer Empire are located, along their border drawn in the early 20th century. The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement on October 26, negotiated by Donald Trump. But Bangkok suspended the treaty a few weeks later after a land mine explosion injured several of its soldiers.
Find other reports like this one on RFI, partner of Metropolises.
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