In a statement released Tuesday, Bangkok announced the immediate suspension of the agreement, accusing Cambodia of planting new landmines along their disputed border strip. According to Thai officials, a landmine explosion on Monday injured four Thai soldiers, one of whom lost his leg.
A Thai government spokesperson told International news agency Reuters that unless Cambodia provides a credible explanation and takes concrete action, Thailand may consider terminating the agreement altogether. Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has reportedly directed the Defense Ministry to freeze all bilateral military arrangements indefinitely.
Cambodia’s Defense Ministry has flatly denied the allegations, insisting that Thailand should avoid patrolling areas still contaminated with decades-old mines left from the civil war era. Phnom Penh added that the country remains among the world’s most landmine-affected nations, with clearance operations still ongoing.
Despite the growing strain, Cambodia maintains that it remains fully committed to cooperation under the expanded ceasefire accord signed in October.
A spokesperson for the U.S. State Department told Reuters that Washington is gathering more information on the incident and has urged both neighboring nations to exercise restraint and uphold their commitments to peace and stability.
The suspended ceasefire had included the withdrawal of heavy weaponry from border regions and the repatriation of 18 Cambodian prisoners of war. It was initially reached after five days of fierce clashes in July, considered the deadliest in recent memory, which left at least 48 people dead and displaced nearly 300,000 civilians.
The border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia stretches back more than a century. Their 817-kilometer boundary was first drawn in 1907 during the French colonial period, but several sections remain contested to this day. In 2011, the two nations also exchanged heavy artillery fire for nearly a week, reigniting old tensions that continue to linger beneath the surface.
