Thai and Cambodian leaders to meet in Malaysia for talks to end deadly border dispute

BANGKOK AP Thai and Cambodian leaders will meet in Malaysia for talks to end hostilities a spokesperson for the Thai prime minister s office explained on Sunday This comes following pressure from U S President Donald Trump to end a deadly boundary dispute now in its fourth day which has killed at least people and displaced more than Jirayu Huangsap declared Acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai will attend Monday s talks in response to an invitation from Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to discuss peace efforts in the region The spokesperson also reported Phumtham s Cambodian counterpart Hun Manet will also attend the talks though this was not promptly substantiated by the Cambodian side He added that Anwar was acting in his quota as chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations or ASEAN held on an annual rotating basis by its members Trump posted on Truth Social on Saturday that he spoke to the leaders of Thailand and Cambodia and suggested he would not move forward with exchange agreements with either country if the hostilities continued He later mentioned both sides agreed to meet to negotiate a ceasefire Both sides agree to discuss a ceasefire Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet stated earlier Sunday his country agreed to pursue an immediate and unconditional ceasefire He explained Trump notified him that Thailand had also agreed to halt attacks following the U S president s conversation with Phumtham He revealed he tasked his deputy Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn to coordinate the next initiatives with U S Secretary of State Marco Rubio and to engage directly with Thailand s foreign minister to implement the ceasefire Thailand expressed cautious promotion Phumtham thanked Trump and explained that Thailand agreed in principle to a ceasefire but stressed the need for sincere intention from Cambodia the Thai Foreign Ministry explained Phumtham called for swift bilateral talks to discuss concrete procedures toward a peaceful resolution it reported Both sides blame the other for the clashes The fighting flared Thursday after a land mine explosion along the demarcation wounded five Thai soldiers Both sides blamed each other for starting the clashes Both countries recalled their ambassadors and Thailand closed its confines crossings with Cambodia Despite the diplomatic efforts fighting continued Sunday along parts of the contested dividing line with both sides refusing to budge and trading blame over renewed shelling and troop movements Col Richa Suksowanont a Thai army deputy spokesperson noted Cambodian forces fired heavy artillery into Surin province including at civilian homes early Sunday He announced Cambodia also launched rocket attacks targeting the ancient Ta Muen Thom temple claimed by both countries and other areas in a bid to reclaim territory secured by Thai troops Thai forces responded with long-range artillery to strike Cambodian artillery and rocket launchers Richa disclosed Trump s efforts to mediate were a separate matter The battlefield operations will continue and a ceasefire can only happen if Cambodia formally initiates negotiations he added Any cessation of hostilities cannot be reached while Cambodia is severely lacking in good faith and repeatedly violating the basic principles of human rights and humanitarian law Thailand s Foreign Ministry announced separately Cambodian Defense Ministry spokesperson Lt Gen Maly Socheata accused Thai forces of escalating the violence with bombardment of Cambodian territory early Sunday followed by a large-scale incursion involving tanks and ground troops in multiple areas Such actions undermine all efforts toward peaceful resolution and expose Thailand s clear intent to escalate rather than de-escalate the conflict she disclosed Thailand on Sunday broadcasted a new death of a soldier bringing the total number of fatalities to mostly civilians Cambodia disclosed people have been killed More than people in Thailand have evacuated to safe locations and over people fled from three Cambodian provinces Multiple edge villages are mostly deserted with a large number of schools and hospitals shut Evacuees hope for a swift end to the fighting Pichayut Surasit an air-conditioning technician in Thailand noted the sudden outbreak of fighting meant leaving his work in Bangkok to return home to protect his family I didn t have the heart to continue with my work when I heard the news I needed to come back as soon as accomplishable but I had to wait until the evening he noted Now at a shelter in Surin housing chosen evacuees Pichayut worries for his wife and twin daughters hoping the conflict will end soon so they can return to their home in Kap Choeng district one of the hardest hit by shelling Bualee Chanduang a local vendor who moved to the same shelter Thursday with her family and pet rabbit is counting on swift negotiations to end the violence I pray for God to help so that both sides can agree to talk and end this war she announced At the Vatican Pope Leo XIV announced he was praying for all those affected by war in the world including for those affected by the clashes on the territory line between Thailand and Cambodia especially the children and displaced families The U N Measure Council has called on ASEAN a regional bloc to mediate peace between the two members Human Rights Watch has condemned the broadcasted use of cluster munitions weapons banned by International law in populated areas and urged both governments to protect civilians The -kilometer -mile frontier between Thailand and Cambodia has been disputed for decades but past confrontations have been limited and brief The latest tensions erupted in May when a Cambodian soldier was killed in a confrontation that created a diplomatic rift and roiled Thailand s domestic politics Associated Press writers Chalida Ekvitthayavechnukul and Grant Peck in Bangkok and Eileen Ng in Kuala Lumpur contributed to this document Sopheng Cheang communicated from Samrong Cambodia Source