Thailand suspends peace agreement with Cambodia. A mine exploded on the border

Thailand is suspending the peace agreement with Cambodia after a mine exploded near the border, injuring two Thai soldiers, said Siripong Angkasakulkiat, a government spokesman in Bangkok. The agreement was concluded in October in the presence of US President Donald Trump.

– We are suspending the implementation of the joint declaration that we have been working on for about a week – said the spokesman. He added that the decision also includes suspending the release of 18 Cambodian soldiers detained by the Thai side.

The agreement, signed on October 26 in Kuala Lumpur by the prime ministers of Cambodia and Thailand, Hun Manet and Anutin Charnvirakul, was intended to end the latest installment of the long-running conflict that escalated in the spring. Trump claimed a key role in solving the crisis, arguing that the ceasefire was negotiated after he threatened to suspend trade agreements.

The dispute over the course of the over 800 km long border between Thailand and Cambodia has been going on for over a century and has repeatedly led to armed skirmishes in which dozens of people have died. Its source is the agreement concluded at the beginning of the 20th century between Siam (former name of Thailand) – then the only uncolonized country in Southeast Asia – and colonial France. Border lines were then drawn, which were contested by Thailand in later years. (PAP)

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