Thailand and Cambodia have agreed to an 'immediate' ceasefire, pledging to halt weeks of border fighting that has claimed more than 100 lives and displaced over half a million people. The joint statement, issued by the defence ministers of both countries, said the truce would take effect on Saturday at noon local time and cover all types of weapons, including attacks on civilians and military objectives.
The agreement, signed by Thai Defence Minister Natthaphon Narkphanit and his Cambodian counterpart Tea Seiha, ended 20 days of skirmishes that involved fighter jet sorties, rocket exchanges, and artillery barrages. Both sides agreed to maintain current troop deployments without further movement, warning that any reinforcement would heighten tensions.
The ceasefire was reached amid ongoing hostilities. Cambodia reported a Thai airstrike on Saturday morning in the northwestern province of Banteay Meanchey, where four bombs were dropped. A similar attack on Friday dropped 40 bombs in the same province, which Thailand's military confirmed. The two countries also pledged to cooperate on demining efforts and combatting cybercrime.
Longstanding territorial claims along the border lie at the heart of the conflict, which erupted into open combat in late July. A previous ceasefire, mediated by Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and backed by US President Donald Trump, collapsed in early December.
Thailand has reported 26 soldiers and one civilian killed directly in the fighting since 7 December, with an additional 44 civilian deaths from collateral effects. Cambodia has not released official military casualty figures but says 30 civilians have died and 90 have been injured. Hundreds of thousands of people have been evacuated from affected areas on both sides of the border.
