PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA—Cambodia announced Saturday it has ordered the immediate suspension of all entry and exit movements at its border crossings with Thailand, a drastic measure taken as fighting along the disputed 800-kilometer colonial-era demarcation line intensified despite U.S. President Donald Trump’s public claim that a ceasefire had been agreed.
The decision by Phnom Penh’s Interior Ministry effectively seals one of Southeast Asia’s most crucial land arteries, disrupting trade and movement between the two nations and confirming the failure of an earlier U.S.-brokered peace accord. The latest escalation has left at least 25 people dead this week, including four Thai soldiers killed on Saturday alone, and has displaced an estimated half a million civilians.
The Clash Over the Truce
The Cambodian move came just hours after Thai officials publicly and unequivocally rejected President Trump’s assertion, made via his Truth Social platform late Friday, that he had secured a fresh truce between Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet.
- Trump’s Claim: The U.S. President wrote that the leaders had agreed to “CEASE all shooting effective this evening, and go back to the original Peace Accord” brokered in July.
- Bangkok’s Denial: Thai Prime Minister Anutin quickly refuted the claim, telling journalists that during their phone call, Trump “didn’t mention whether we should make a ceasefire” and that the two leaders “didn’t discuss” the issue.
- Cambodian Action: Phnom Penh’s decision to seal the border served as a concrete rejection of the ceasefire claim. The Cambodian Defense Ministry stated separately that Thai forces, including fighter jets, had continued to bombard its territory throughout Saturday morning.
The renewed violence centers on a long-running dispute over the border’s demarcation, which dates back more than a century to the era of French Indochina, with both sides accusing the other of violating previous agreements, including the July ceasefire brokered by the U.S. and ASEAN.
Humanitarian Crisis and Economic Fallout
The fighting, which includes the use of heavy weapons, rocket barrages, and Thai airstrikes, has taken a heavy toll on civilian life and infrastructure.
- Displaced Civilians: Hundreds of thousands of residents from both sides of the border have been forced to flee their homes, taking refuge in temporary shelters, schools, and pagodas. Cambodian officials reported that over 101,000 people have been evacuated in their country alone.
- Civilian Casualties: Thailand reported six people were wounded Saturday by Cambodian rocket fire, while Cambodia’s Information Minister Neth Pheaktra accused Thai forces of expanding attacks to include civilian infrastructure.
- Economic Blow: The closure of all border crossings—including the busy Poipet International Checkpoint—halts a significant volume of cross-border trade, travel, and tourism, threatening the livelihoods of thousands of people dependent on the flow of goods and labor.
The escalating military conflict has now prompted a regional response, with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, as Chair of the regional bloc ASEAN, urging both sides to cease all hostilities and announcing that a special meeting of ASEAN Foreign Ministers will be convened to assess the situation and support de-escalation measures.
The closure of the border marks the most severe diplomatic rupture between the two neighbors in recent years, transforming a localized territorial dispute into a major humanitarian and regional crisis.