US President Donald Trump on Saturday said the ongoing tensions between Cambodia and Thailand reminded him of the recent India-Pakistan conflict, as he urged both sides to cease all hostilities. He later announced that the leaders of the two Southeast Asian nations had agreed to meet immediately to negotiate a ceasefire.
“We happen to be, by coincidence, currently dealing on Trade with both Countries, but do not want to make any Deal, with either Country, if they are fighting — And I have told them so! The call with Thailand is being made momentarily,” Trump said.
“Many people are being killed in this War, but it very much reminds me of the Conflict between Pakistan and India, which was brought to a successful halt,” he added, after speaking with the Cambodian Prime Minister.
Trump has multiple times claimed credit for helping de-escalate tensions between India and Pakistan earlier this year, a claim India has strongly refuted.
The India-Pakistan clash erupted in May after India launched Operation Sindoor in response to a deadly terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam that killed 26 people, most of them tourists.
THAILAND-CAMBODIA BORDER CLASH
Meanwhile, the Thailand-Cambodia conflict has entered its third day, leaving at least 33 people dead and displacing over 168,000 residents. Cambodian Information Minister Neth Pheaktra said 37,635 people have been evacuated from three border provinces. Thai authorities confirmed more than 131,000 have fled their homes.
The latest flare-up was triggered by the late-May death of a Cambodian soldier, leading to a surge in troop deployments along the disputed 817-kilometre border.
The conflict has long been fuelled by competing claims over historical sites, especially the UNESCO-listed Preah Vihear Temple, which the International Court of Justice awarded to Cambodia in a 1962 ruling. Thailand has never fully accepted the decision.
As of Saturday, Thailand reported 20 fatalities (including seven soldiers and 13 civilians), while Cambodia said 13 had died, including five soldiers and eight civilians.
Cambodia’s defence ministry accused Thailand of “unlawful aggression” and a military buildup, calling on the international community to condemn Bangkok’s actions.
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