SAMRAONG, Cambodia – Thailand and Cambodia clashed for a fourth day Sunday, despite both sides saying they were ready to discuss a ceasefire after a late-night intervention by US President Donald Trump.
The neighbors, popular destinations for millions of foreign tourists, have been locked in their bloodiest conflict in years over their disputed border, with at least 34 people confirmed killed and more than 200,000 displaced.
Both said they were willing to start talks to end the fighting, after Trump spoke to the two prime ministers late on Saturday (Sunday Manila time) and said they had agreed to meet and “quickly work out” a ceasefire.
But fresh artillery clashes erupted on Sunday morning near two long-contested ancient temples in the frontier region between northern Cambodia and northeast Thailand that has seen the bulk of the fighting.
Cambodian defense ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata said Thai forced began attacking areas around the temples at 4:50 am.
The regular thump of artillery rattled windows in the Cambodian town of Samraong, around 20 kilometres (12 miles) from the frontline, AFP journalists said.
Thai Army Deputy Spokesman Ritcha Suksuwanon said Cambodian forces began firing artillery around 4:00 am as the two sides battled for control of strategic positions.
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet on Sunday said his country “agreed with the proposal for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire between the two armed forces”.
He said his Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn will talk to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to coordinate with the Thais, but warned Bangkok against reneging on any agreeement.
Earlier, after Trump’s call, Thailand’s acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai said he had agreed in principle to entering a ceasefire and starting talks “as soon as possible.”
But he warned that Cambodia must show “sincere intention” to bring about peace.
A long-running border dispute erupted into combat this week with jets, tanks and ground troops battling in the rural border region, marked by a ridge of hills surrounded by wild jungle and agricultural land where locals farm rubber and rice.
Thailand says seven of its soldiers and 13 civilians have been killed, while Cambodia has confirmed eight civilian deaths and five military.
The conflict has forced more than 138,000 people to be evacuated from Thailand’s border regions, and 80,000 have been driven from their homes in Cambodia.
After an urgent United Nations Security Council meeting Friday in New York, Cambodia’s UN Ambassador Chhea Keo said his country wanted “an immediate ceasefire” and a peaceful resolution of the dispute.
UN chief Antonio Guterres urged both sides Saturday to “immediately agree to a ceasefire” and hold talks to find a lasting solution.
“The Secretary-General condemns the tragic and unnecessary loss of lives, injuries to civilians and the damage to homes and infrastructure on both sides,” his deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said in a statement.
Both sides have blamed the other for firing first.
Cambodia has also accused Thai forces of using cluster munitions, while Thailand accused Cambodia of targeting civilian infrastructure, including a hospital hit by shells.
The fighting marks a dramatic escalation in a long-running dispute between the neighbors over their shared 800-kilometer border where dozens of kilometers are contested.
As Cambodia and Thailand traded deadly strikes, fleeing civilians on both sides described their cross-border neighbors as “siblings” and “friends” — swapping calls for peace against the backdrop of artillery barrages.
The death toll from three days of fighting has risen to 33, the majority civilians, after a long-running border dispute sharply escalated into combat waged with jets, artillery, tanks and ground troops.
“Relations used to be good -– we were like siblings,” said 56-year-old Sai Boonrod, one of hundreds of Thais sheltering at a temple in the town of Kanthararom after evacuating her border village home.
“But now things may have changed,” she told AFP. “I just want the fighting to end so we can go back to being like siblings again.”
Over the Cambodian border, 150 kilometers from Sai’s temporary home, a similar scene plays out: hundreds of evacuees huddled in makeshift tents on a temple site, surrounded by emergency food rations and their hastily packed clothes.
“We are neighbors, we want to be friends,” one 50-year-old told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity at the temple shelter in Phumi Bak Thkav.
“But they are attacking us. We are fleeing homes because of them.”
Tensions have long flared over the countries’ shared 800-kilometre border, peppered with ancient temple sites claimed by both nations.
The previous most deadly clashes broke out between 2008 and 2011 — leaving at least 28 people dead.
But stretching her legs on a bamboo mat, Sai said “it was never this violent” in previous times.
She is one of more than 170,000 evacuated from the countries’ border zones, but her husband stayed behind to help guard neighbours’ livestock and belongings.
“I want them to negotiate, to stop firing quickly… so the elderly can return home and the children can go back to school,” she said.
The UN Security Council held an urgent meeting on Friday and both sides have said they are open to a truce — but accused the other of undermining armistice efforts.
This flare-up began with a gun battle in late May killing one Cambodian soldier, and festered with tit-for-tat trade restrictions and border closures before hostilities spiked on Thursday.
At 73 years old, Suwan Promsri has lived through many episodes of border friction — but said this one feels “so much different.”
He said resentment of Cambodians among Thais — including himself — is growing, with patriotic online discourse fanning the flames.
In February, Bangkok formally protested to Phnom Penh after a video of women singing a patriotic Khmer song in front of a disputed temple was posted on social media.
The fighting has also been accompanied by a wave of online misinformation and disinformation from both sides.
“Before the internet, I felt indifferent,” said Suwan. “But social media really plays a part in fuelling this hatred.”
Despite the divisions, he is united with his Thai neighbors, and those over the border in Cambodia, in his calls for peace.
“I want the government to realise that people along the border are suffering. Life is difficult,” he said.
“I hope the authorities work on negotiations to end the fighting as soon as possible.”
