WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump is pressing Cambodia and Thailand to uphold their commitments under a fragile ceasefire he helped broker, following Thailand's launch of airstrikes early Monday that killed at least four Cambodian civilians and wounded nine others, according to Phnom Penh officials. The attacks, which Thai military spokespeople described as "proportionate" retaliation for an earlier Cambodian assault that claimed one Thai soldier's life and injured eight more, have displaced over 50,000 people on both sides of the 817-kilometer (508-mile) border and cast serious doubt on the Kuala Lumpur Peace Accords signed just six weeks ago. A senior administration official, speaking anonymously to Anadolu Agency, reiterated Trump's dedication to de-escalation: “President Trump is committed to the continued cessation of violence and expects the governments of Cambodia and Thailand to fully honor their commitments to end this conflict.”
The strikes, carried out by Royal Thai Air Force F-16 fighters targeting Cambodian military infrastructure in Preah Vihear and Oddar Meanchey provinces, marked the most severe breach of the truce since its October signing in Kuala Lumpur, where Trump and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim stood witness as Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul inked the expanded declaration. Thailand's Second Army Region reported that Cambodian BM-21 rocket fire had struck civilian areas in Ubon Ratchathani and Sisaket provinces Sunday night, prompting the aerial response around 9 a.m. Monday. Cambodia's Defense Ministry vehemently denied initiating hostilities, accusing Thai forces of "inhumane and brutal acts" and claiming no retaliation occurred, while former Prime Minister Hun Sen—father of current leader Hun Manet—urged Cambodian troops to show restraint against what he called Thai provocations aimed at derailing the peace process.
This latest flare-up traces its roots to a century-old territorial quarrel exacerbated by French colonial maps from 1907, which Thailand deems inaccurate, particularly around the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple awarded to Cambodia by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in 1962. Tensions simmered in May 2025 with a brief exchange of fire that killed a Cambodian soldier, but erupted into full-scale war on July 23 when artillery duels and rocket barrages claimed at least 48 lives—mostly civilians—and displaced 300,000 across the Emerald Triangle region. Trump intervened on July 26, phoning both leaders and conditioning resumption of U.S. tariff negotiations—critical for Thailand's $50 billion annual exports and Cambodia's $10 billion—on an immediate halt to hostilities, crediting his "deal-making" for the initial July 28 truce brokered alongside Anwar's ASEAN mediation. That provisional ceasefire evolved into the October 26 Kuala Lumpur Accords, a 13-point framework mandating troop withdrawals, joint mine-clearing operations, the release of 18 Cambodian prisoners of war, and formation of binational observer teams to monitor the undemarcated frontier.
The accords, dubbed the "Kuala Lumpur Peace Accords" by Trump—who touted them as a Nobel-worthy triumph during his ASEAN summit visit—also included economic sweeteners like U.S. pledges for $200 million in joint infrastructure projects and a task force against cross-border scam centers, which have bilked Americans of $1.5 billion annually. Cambodian officials nominated Trump for the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize on August 7, praising his role in averting a "catastrophic regional war," while Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow hailed the deal as a "pathway to peace" despite Bangkok's historical aversion to third-party involvement. Yet the agreement sidestepped core issues like border demarcation, leaving flashpoints vulnerable to nationalist fervor and environmental strains from Mekong River damming, which has halved water flows to shared wetlands.
Fragility surfaced in November when a landmine explosion in Thailand's Si Sa Ket province maimed a soldier, prompting Bangkok to suspend de-escalation measures on November 11 and accuse Phnom Penh of planting fresh explosives—a charge Cambodia rejected, countering that the devices dated to the 2011 skirmishes. Sporadic gunfire ensued, killing a Cambodian civilian on November 13 and injuring three Thai troops, with both sides trading blame in a cycle reminiscent of the 2008-2011 clashes that claimed 28 lives over Preah Vihear's UNESCO status. Trump downplayed the incidents in mid-November, boasting on Truth Social that he had "stopped a war" via tariff leverage, but analysts warned the accords lacked enforcement teeth, relying on goodwill amid domestic pressures: Thailand's coalition instability and Cambodia's economic woes from U.S. garment tariffs.
Monday's escalation unfolded amid Thailand's hosting of the Southeast Asia Games starting Tuesday, with Anutin warning in a televised address that "the time for negotiation is over unless Cambodia honors the terms," while authorizing "full force" defenses. Cambodian Information Minister Neth Pheaktra reported the airstrikes razed villages in Oddar Meanchey, forcing 35,000 evacuations and shuttering border schools, as streams of families fled on motorcycles toward safer inland areas. Verified videos showed plumes of smoke rising near Preah Vihear, with eyewitnesses describing F-16s roaring overhead for hours. Thailand's army confirmed over 385,000 civilians in border districts were under evacuation orders, with 35,000 already in shelters in Buriram and Ubon Ratchathani.
International alarm mounted swiftly. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for "maximum restraint," offering mediation support, while Anwar—whose "constructive intervention" facilitated the accords—decried the violence as risking "unraveling careful stabilization efforts." China's Foreign Ministry, a Phnom Penh ally with interests in Cambodian ports, urged dialogue via the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, and ASEAN's chair expressed "deep concern" over disruptions to regional trade routes valued at $100 billion yearly.
The White House, through spokesperson Karoline Leavitt, affirmed Trump's readiness to reconvene leaders, hinting at renewed tariff pressures—Thailand faces 36% duties on electronics, Cambodia 20% on apparel—if hostilities persist. Yet experts caution that economic sticks alone won't suffice without addressing nationalism: Thai protests against "land grabs" and Cambodian rallies invoking Hun Sen's anti-Thai legacy. As tanks rumble and refugees swell camps—echoing July's exodus—the accords teeter on collapse, testing whether Trump's tariff diplomacy can resurrect a peace he once hailed as "historic." With the border a tinderbox of colonial ghosts and modern ambitions, the coming days may dictate not just bilateral fates, but ASEAN's cohesion amid great-power jockeying. For now, Trump's expectation rings hollow against the thunder of jets, a stark reminder that borders drawn in ink bleed in reality.
