Thailand and Cambodia agree in principle on a ceasefire

Thailand and Cambodia have reached a preliminary agreement on a provisional ceasefire, which still needs to be validated.

After three days of intense negotiations at the Ban Pakkad Immigration Office in Chanthaburi Province, the secretariats of the Thailand and Cambodia General Border Committees (GBC) have reached an agreement on the terms of an initial ceasefire.

See: Thailand and Cambodia resume peace talks

This is to come into effect this Saturday, December 27.

A source close to the Thai secretariat said the initial ceasefire would be monitored for 72 hours and that any subsequent ceasefire agreement would need to be approved by the National Security Council (NSC).

The source said the atmosphere at the GBC Secretariat meeting on December 26 was tense, with both sides striving to develop a mutually acceptable ceasefire agreement.

The meeting concluded with a new draft agreement, the sixth since the resumption of border tensions.

If approved by the NSC, chaired by Acting Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, Thai Defense Minister General Nattaphon Nakpanich will sign the peace agreement with his Cambodian counterpart in Chanthaburi Province today.

Bangkok refuses to return to pre-conflict positions

Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said that the National Security Council had authorized Defense Minister General Nattaphon Narkphanit (center) to sign a joint statement between Thailand and Cambodia approving a ceasefire on Saturday in Chanthaburi. Photo: Government House

Anutin Charnvirakul reaffirmed that Thailand would accept a 72-hour ceasefire, but rejected Cambodia's request to resume negotiations from the positions prior to the latest fighting.

He said Bangkok "could not withdraw" from areas it believed it had secured.

This statement came in an extremely tense context, just hours before a Cambodian rocket attack on Ban Nong Chan, in Surin province, which killed three Thai soldiers and injured 17 on Friday late afternoon.

According to the acting Prime Minister, the National Security Council authorized the sending of the Defense Minister, General Nattaphon Nakpanich, to lead the Thai delegation at the General Border Committee (GBC) talks scheduled for Saturday in Chanthaburi.

Mines, prisoners and conditions set by Bangkok

Cambodian soldiers in uniform lay a Russian PMN-2 anti-personnel mine. Image extracted from a phone recovered by the Thai army.

Mr. Anutin specified that Thailand required an effective 72-hour ceasefire before considering the release of 18 Cambodian soldiers detained since the first cycle of hostilities in July.

He also stated that the Thai armed forces had achieved their operational objectives and that demining teams had discovered new explosive devices on Thai soil, elements confirmed by ASEAN observers.

See also:

Mines: Thailand unveils new damning evidence against Cambodia

Cybercrime in Cambodia: Trip.com ends partnership

Thailand-Cambodia conflict: the army says it is targeting cybercriminals and casinos

Source: Thai PBS World, Bangkok Post