Thailand Rejects Ceasefire, Vows to Continue Fighting Cambodia After Trump Announcement

Bangkok – Despite U.S. President Donald Trump's claim of brokering a new ceasefire, Thailand's leader has vowed to continue fighting on the disputed border with Cambodia. Hours after Trump's announcement, Thai fighter jets struck targets in the area.

Caretaker Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul stated on Saturday that Thailand would “continue to perform military actions until we feel no more harm and threats to our land and people.”

Trump had spoken with both Anutin and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet on Friday, asserting that they had agreed to “cease all shooting.” This supposed agreement followed Trump's earlier efforts to broker a ceasefire in October regarding the long-running border dispute.

That said, the reality is a bit more complicated. neither Anutin nor Hun Manet mentioned any agreement in their statements following their calls with Trump. Anutin explicitly denied the existence of a ceasefire. "I want to make it clear. Our actions this morning already spoke,” Anutin posted on Facebook.

The White House has not yet responded to requests for comment regarding the continued fighting.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, in a Facebook statement on Saturday, welcomed a proposal by Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to halt hostilities starting Saturday evening. Anwar, who chairs the 10-nation ASEAN grouping and has previously acted as a mediator in peace talks, urged both sides to “refrain from any further military actions including the use of force or forward movement of armed units” beginning at 1500 GMT in a Facebook post.

Anwar also stated that an ASEAN observer team, led by the Malaysian chief of defense forces, would be deployed to the border, with the U.S. government providing satellite monitoring capabilities. Anutin did not comment on this proposal.