Cambodia Urges ‘Immediate Ceasefire’ With Thailand Following Fatal Border Skirmishes: UN Envoy
An urgent session of the United Nations Security Council was convened on Friday in response to the deadly border skirmishes between Cambodia and Thailand, which erupted on Thursday.
Cambodia has appealed for an “immediate and unconditional ceasefire” with Thailand, its envoy to the United Nations stated on Friday, as both nations continued their deadly confrontation into a second day. Thailand has also indicated its openness to engage in dialogue.
A decades-old territorial disagreement has escalated into a full-blown military clash involving airstrikes, artillery, tanks, and ground forces on Thursday — prompting the UN Security Council to hold an emergency meeting the following day.
“Cambodia requested an unconditional ceasefire and also appealed for a peaceful resolution to the dispute,” said Phnom Penh’s ambassador to the UN, Chhea Keo, after a closed-door Council session attended by both Cambodia and Thailand, according to news agency AFP.
Explosions from artillery shelling were heard from the Cambodian side of the border on Friday. In Oddar Meanchey province, one 70-year-old man was killed and five others injured.
Thailand’s health ministry reported that more than 138,000 residents have been relocated from border regions. So far, 15 people have died — including 14 civilians and one soldier — while 46 others have been wounded, 15 of them soldiers. Cambodia’s defence ministry confirmed that the death toll on their side had reached 13.
Cambodian spokesperson Maly Socheata noted that the casualties included five military personnel and eight civilians, while over 35,000 individuals have been displaced within Cambodia.
Clashes reignited in three different zones around 4 a.m. on Friday, with Cambodian troops launching heavy weaponry, artillery, and BM-21 rocket systems, the Thai military reported.
Thailand’s foreign ministry spokesperson Nikorndej Balankura told AFP that hostilities had started subsiding by Friday afternoon. He added that Thailand is open to peace talks, possibly facilitated by Malaysia.
“We are prepared, if Cambodia wishes to resolve this through diplomatic means — bilaterally or even via Malaysia — we are open to that. However, we have yet to receive any response,” Nikorndej told AFP prior to the UN meeting.
Malaysia currently chairs the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which includes both Thailand and Cambodia among its member states.
Earlier, Thailand’s acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai warned that if the conflict worsens, “it could escalate into a war.” But he added, “for the time being, it remains a limited clash,” while speaking to reporters in Bangkok.
The violence marks a significant escalation in the long-standing border conflict between the two countries, both of which are popular tourist destinations. They share an 800-kilometre border with several disputed areas.
Between 2008 and 2011, similar skirmishes occurred, leaving at least 28 people dead and tens of thousands displaced. A ruling by a UN court in 2013 helped maintain peace for over ten years. However, the current conflict reignited in May after a Cambodian soldier was killed in a new clash.
