Thailand and Cambodia agreed to establish interim observer teams to monitor a fragile ceasefire that ended five days of deadly armed border clashes, even as the fate of 18 Cambodian soldiers captured by Thailand remains unresolved.
The first meeting of the General Border Committee concluded after four days of talks in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, with a focus on ensuring the full implementation of the ceasefire brokered by Malaysia on July 28. According to a joint statement from the committee, each country will set up its own interim observer team comprising defense officials from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and coordinated by the bloc’s annual chair Malaysia, pending the deployment of a formal ASEAN observer mission. The interim teams will operate within their respective borders and work closely with local military authorities.
Dozens of people were killed and over 260,000 displaced on both sides of the Thai-Cambodian border, when fighting began after a land mine explosion along the border wounded five Thai soldiers.
Tensions persisted as each country accused the other of violating the agreements and organized tours of the former battle areas for foreign diplomats and other observers to highlight damage allegedly caused by the other side. The two countries also continued to accuse each other of having violated international humanitarian laws with attacks on civilians and the use of illegal weapons.
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