Donald Trump said he will speak to the leaders of Thailand and Cambodia to stop the fierce border fighting that erupted again between the two neighbours, months after a truce brokered by the U.S. president.
Trump was credited with ending the hostilities between the two countries in July this year and bringing them to the table to sign a ceasefire to maintain peace at the contested border.
However, the truce signed in an October summit in Trump's presence collapsed early on December 8 after the two blamed each other for starting the clashes.
“I hate to say this, Cambodia and Thailand started up today and tomorrow I am going to have to make a phone call,” Trump said at a rally in Pennsylvania Tuesday evening.
Trump boasted of ending at least eight conflicts in the last 11 months of his presidency, including between Pakistan and India, and Israel and Iran, before commenting on the renewed conflict in Southeast Asia.
“Who else could say ‘I'm going to make a phone call and stop a war between two very powerful countries, Thailand and Cambodia,’” Trump said.
The hostilities are rooted in a longstanding dispute that dates back to the early 20th century, largely stemming from a 1907 map drawn when Cambodia was under French colonial rule, which Thailand has argued is inaccurate. Many Thais are still angered by a 1962 ruling by the International Court of Justice, which awarded sovereignty of disputed land to Cambodia – a decision reaffirmed in 2013. The disagreement fuelled several armed clashes between 2008 and 2011.
Asked about the prospect of Trump intervening again, Cambodian government spokesperson Pen Bona said Phnom Penh's position remained the same – that it wanted peace.
A Thai government spokesperson said he did not know if the Prime Minister had spoken to Trump, as he was in parliament.
A total of 13 people have been killed in the latest round of fighting, including 9 civilians in Cambodia and four soldiers in Thailand, with many injured and thousands displaced.
The two countries have relayed conflicting versions of how this week’s violence started, with the Thai army accusing Cambodia of launching fire across the border at around 3am local time on Monday.
The Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) said its own airstrikes were targeted on “weapon depots, command centres and logistical routes assessed as direct threats”, not civilians.
The 11th-century temple Ta Kwai Temple in the south of Surin province, near the Cambodian border, has come under attack and was partially damaged, Bangkok-based newspaper The Nation reported.
Army spokesperson Major General Winthai Suvaree said Cambodian troops are using heavy fire around the temple, “causing extensive damage to the site and nearby terrain”, it reported.
He said Thai troops were continuing to push back Cambodian forces from around the Ta Kwai temple and secure the surrounding area.
Cambodia Monday accused the Thai army of shelling on Preah Vihear and Ta Moan Thom temples.
In a press conference, Thailand's military said rockets fired by Cambodian forces landed near the Phanom Dong Rak Hospital in Surin district on Wednesday morning, forcing the evacuation of patients and staff to a shelter.
It also said drones, rockets, and tanks were used at other border points, including near the contested Preah Vihear temple complex.
"Our forces destroyed an anti-drone position to the south of Chong Chom in order to support operations to clear Cambodian elements in a mango plantation that has been planted across the line of operations," the military said in a situation update.
Cambodia's military accused Thailand of using artillery fire and armed drones to launch attacks in Pursat province, fired mortars into civilian residences in Battambang province, and Thai F-16 fighter jets had entered Cambodian airspace and dropped bombs near civilian areas.
Cambodia Wednesday withdrew its team from the Southeast Asian Games in Thailand, citing safety fear, a day after the team took part in the Games’ opening ceremony in Bangkok.
In a letter to organisers, the National Olympic Committee of Cambodia said it acted after receiving “serious concerns” and requests from athletes’ families for their return.
Suos Yara, head of the Cambodian National Assembly’s Committee on Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation and Information, earlier told The Independent that “blood is being spilled” every moment and “we have to stop now”.
Thailand and Cambodia saw 48 people killed on both sides of the border when fighting broke out in July when the two countries traded missiles, drones, and heavy artillery fire during the five days of fighting.
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