A Chinese man was injured on Saturday after stepping on a land mine while allegedly attempting to cross illegally from Cambodia into Thailand, the Thai army has said. The incident has reignited accusations between the two countries over the use of anti-personnel mines in disputed border territory.
Army spokesperson Major General Winthai Suvaree stated that the area where the explosion occurred, which Thailand claims as part of its eastern province of Sa Kaeo, 'is contaminated with land mines that Thai authorities are in the process of clearing according to plan.' The army did not provide details of the man's injuries but identified him as 26-year-old Shi Jingui from Yunnan Province.
The Chinese Embassy in Thailand confirmed the incident, describing the man's condition as stable but not naming him. The embassy statement did not comment on the circumstances of his crossing.
Land mine explosions earlier this year that wounded Thai soldiers sparked five days of intensive fighting in late July, and disputes over border demarcation have long strained relations. More recent mine incidents have threatened a US-brokered ceasefire that ended the brief conflict.
The Thai army repeated its accusation that Cambodia has been planting new mines, saying 'the abundance of evidence points to the continued use of new mines.' Cambodia has denied laying new mines, suggesting they could be leftovers from its decades-long internal conflicts that ended in 1999.
Thailand earlier this month paused implementation of the ceasefire details, demanding an apology from Cambodia over a mine blast that injured four Thai soldiers. The Thai army spokesperson also claimed that Cambodia has not cooperated in clearing mines along the shared border despite repeated proposals.
