Thai defence minister to attend truce talks with Cambodia, PM says

By Panu Wongcha-um

BANGKOK, Dec 26 (Reuters) – Thailand’s defence minister will join ongoing talks with Cambodia on Saturday that could lead to a truce, the Thai premier said on Friday, as border clashes between the two Southeast Asian neighbours continued for a third week.

If the defence minister is able to come to an agreement with his Cambodian counterpart, the two countries will make a deal in line with a previous pact brokered with the help of U.S. President Donald Trump following a previous round of clashes in July, he said.

“What is important is that both of us have to keep the promises that both will not threaten, offend, and instigate, and to reduce hostility between the two countries,” Anutin Charnvirakul told reporters in Bangkok, referring to a potential deal.

A Cambodian defence ministry spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Thai and Cambodian officials have been holding parleys at a border crossing since Wednesday as hostilities between the two countries continued. The ceasefire broke down in early December, with at least 98 people killed on both sides and more than half a million on displaced.

Since the conflict restarted, neither Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim – chair of the ASEAN bloc that facilitated the previous ceasefire – nor Trump have been successful in halting hostilities.

The warring sides have also been pressed by Beijing to put an end to the fighting, with China’s special envoy for Asian affairs Deng Xijun holding talks in Bangkok and Phnom Penh in recent days.

“I hope that this time will be the last time to sign such an agreement, so that there will be peace in the area and people can return to their homes,” Anutin said.

Thailand and Cambodia have accused each other of moves that led to the breakdown of the July truce, which was expanded into a wider agreement in October to help settle the conflict.

The neighbours have long disputed sections of their 817-km (508-mile) land border, and the latest fighting has stretched from forested inland areas near Laos to coastal provinces.

(Reporting by Panu Wongcha-um, Writing by Devjyot Ghoshal; Editing by David Stanway)