Description: Thai and Cambodian officials have traded blame for violating the fragile US – brokered ceasefire which ended five days of intense armed confrontations. Thai border officials have accused their Cambodian counterparts of preemptively planting new land mines in sensitive and disputed regions, while Cambodia has accused Thailand of setting up barbed wire and expelling people on their side of the border. The US urged both sides to exercise restraint and uphold further mediation by Malaysia, which is negotiating with both sides to establish an independent body for monitoring compliance regarding the ceasefire from both sides. China also urged both countries to remain committed to achieving peaceful resolution to their decades – long dispute and pledged various ventures of cooperation with both Thailand and Cambodia.
Impact: Bilateral border tensions between Thailand and Cambodia remained high despite involvement from the US, China and Malaysia in achieving the ceasefire agreement. China and the US are both aiming at inserting themselves as dominant players through different means of economic incentives, which highlights the geopolitical importance of the region. Malaysian mediated talks through defense officials from both countries have so far stagnated and delivered no concrete proposals which compromises the potential for a long-lasting peace agreement in the upcoming period. Military buildup in the disputed border regions has also intensified which for the time being, could be perceived as a bilateral deterrence and counterbalance measure in case the ceasefire fails to hold.