Trump made a special visit to the ASEAN summit in Kuala Lumpur in October to preside, alongside Ibrahim, over fresh Thailand-Cambodia peace accords that he heralded as historic. He has claimed the conflict as one of eight that he has “solved” as president.
But the deal was fragile from the outset, with Thailand signalling it was a starting point to peace rather than the conclusion of hostilities.
In this photo released by the Royal Thai Army, a wounded Thai soldier is carried to be transferred to a hospital in Si Sa Ket province.Credit: AP
Barely a fortnight later, fresh fighting broke out at the border. Phnom Penh said a civilian had been killed in the fighting. Thailand had earlier accused Cambodia of planting landmines that injured several soldiers.
The latest clashes have sparked another round of evacuations for weary civilians on both sides of the border.
Cambodia wishes to take the border disputes, which have their origin in colonial-era map-making, to the International Court of Justice, where it has previously had success. Thailand wants to settle the matters bilaterally.
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The nationalist sentiment in both countries makes it politically difficult for either leader to be seen to cede sovereign territory. Critics say the Hun Sen and Hun Manet regime, which does not tolerate dissent or opposition, has used the conflict to shore up their party’s power.
Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, meanwhile, has promised elections in the new year, and is facing a backlash for his administration’s handling of the flood crisis in the southern part of the country.
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