Military officials from Cambodia and Thailand held two rounds of talks Tuesday, agreeing to improve communication and stop sending troops to the border, a top Cambodian official said.
“The two armies, the two countries, we have to talk and then sincerely talk and then honestly talk,” Lim Menghour, director general of the National Assembly of Cambodia, said in a telephone interview, emphasizing that both sides need to avoid disinformation.
Clashes over a disputed border have killed at least three dozen people over the past six days, although a ceasefire went into effect at midnight Monday after US President Donald Trump told both sides they needed to stop fighting if they wanted trade deals.
Thailand has since claimed that Cambodia violated the ceasefire. Phnom Penh disputed the charge.
Cambodia fully implemented the agreement, Lim said. “There are no more armed clashes. There’s no more fighting along the border,” he added.
The Thai-Cambodia conflict traces its roots to long-standing disputes stemming from colonial-era maps and treaties that defined boundaries. Relations had remained relatively stable since a 2011 clash that left dozens dead, before erupting into intense fighting last week.
Lim couldn’t confirm the number of casualties, but said the human toll is likely to climb. There has also been damage to cultural landmarks like Preah Vihear temple, he said.
{{/usCountry}}Lim couldn’t confirm the number of casualties, but said the human toll is likely to climb. There has also been damage to cultural landmarks like Preah Vihear temple, he said.
{{/usCountry}}“That’s why a ceasefire is really important, so that our technical team could go and make an assessment on that situation,” he said.
Lim praised both Washington and Beijing for their efforts to calm the situation, singling out the “good effort and good gesture from US President Donald Trump to mediate this conflict.”
“Our foreign policy is very clear, friends to everyone and enemy to none,” Lim said.