Thailand announced on Monday it was suspending the implementation of a peace agreement with neighbouring Cambodia after a landmine blast injured two Thai soldiers near the border.
The deal, overseen by US President Donald Trump, was meant to secure a lasting end to hostilities following border clashes in July that killed at least 43 people and displaced more than 300,000 civilians on both sides.
The Royal Thai Army said in a statement that the mine explosion in Sisaket province left one soldier with a severe leg injury, while pressure from the blast caused another to withstand chest pains.
Thai government spokesman Siripong Angkasakulkiat said that Bangkok will cease "the follow-up to the joint declaration", meaning the accord with Cambodia inked in Kuala Lumpur in late October, months after the two sides had agreed a ceasefire.
The next steps planned as part of the agreement's implementation included the release of 18 Cambodian soldiers detained in Thailand.
Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul told a press conference that "we thought that the security threat had eased, but it has not actually decreased."
{{/usCountry}}Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul told a press conference that "we thought that the security threat had eased, but it has not actually decreased."
{{/usCountry}}Cambodian authorities did not immediately comment on the incident, but have in the past denied Thai accusations of planting new landmines along the border.
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Cambodia's defence ministry pledged in a statement on Monday an "unwavering commitment" to peace.
The Southeast Asian neighbours have a dispute over parts of their border dating back more than a century, but July's fighting was sparked by Thailand's claims that Cambodia planted landmines that wounded its troops.