Thailand-Cambodia Ceasefire Takes Effect at Noon Saturday

A ceasefire between Thailand and Cambodia took effect at 12:00 p.m. local time on Saturday after bilateral talks aimed at stopping weeks of heavy fighting along their shared border.

Thai Defence Minister General Natthaphon Nakphanit said the ceasefire applies “along the entire line of contact between the troops” and includes a commitment by both sides not to increase troop levels or deploy additional weapons or equipment in border areas. All forces are to remain in current positions and halt all hostile actions, including weapons use and what he described as provocative acts.

The truce will be monitored for 72 hours by military observers from the Association of SouthEast Asian Nations (ASEAN), along with personnel from both countries. Nakphanit said that if security conditions improve, displaced civilians will be allowed to return, after which Thailand will hand over captured Cambodian military personnel to Cambodia.

The agreement, signed on December 27 by Nakphanit and Cambodian Defence Minister Tea Seiha, ends about 20 days of fighting described as the worst in years. The clashes involved fighter jet sorties, rocket fire, and artillery barrages, killing at least 101 people and displacing more than 500,000 civilians on both sides of the border.

The violence flared again in early December after the collapse of an earlier ceasefire brokered in July with U.S. involvement.

In a statement released the same day, Cambodia’s Ministry of National Defence said a special meeting of the Cambodia-Thai General Border Committee adopted a joint statement reaffirming both sides’ “firm commitment to fully implement the ceasefire and seek peace, stability and security for the people living along the Cambodia-Thailand border.”