Thailand-Cambodia Fighting Hits Fourth Day as Trump Says He Can Stop It

Fighting between Thailand and Cambodia entered a fourth day on Thursday, with clashes at more than a dozen locations along their roughly 500-mile border, according to Al Jazeera and NBC News. Each side blames the other for reigniting the conflict, which began on Monday and, Al Jazeera said, has spread to five provinces across the two countries, according to an AFP tally. The fighting threatens a ceasefire that President Donald Trump helped broker.

Casualty figures differ by source and by hour. Al Jazeera reported that the Thai military said three Thai civilians and eight Thai soldiers had been killed, with 80 soldiers wounded, while Cambodia’s Interior Ministry put its toll at 11 civilians, including an infant, with about 75 injured. NBC News, in its Thursday report, cited Cambodia’s government at 10 killed, including an infant, and 60 wounded, and the Thai army at nine soldiers killed and more than 120 wounded. Hundreds of thousands of people have been evacuated from border areas in both countries, NBC reported; Al Jazeera put the number of Thai and Cambodian civilians who have fled at more than 500,000.

The two governments trade accusations about civilians. NBC reported that Cambodia’s Interior Ministry said homes, schools, roads, pagodas and ancient temples were damaged by “Thailand’s intensified shelling and F-16 airstrikes targeting villages and civilian population centers,” and that Thailand denies targeting civilian infrastructure. Al Jazeera reported that the Thai army said Cambodia had “intentionally” used a historical site as a “military base of operations.”

The United States has a stake in the outcome. NBC reported that Trump stopped a five-day battle in July with calls to both leaders in which he threatened to halt trade talks, and that the July deal, which Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim helped broker, resulted in an extended ceasefire signed in October. Al Jazeera noted that Trump presided over the October 26 signing. NBC said Thailand has reacted more warily to the latest overtures and insists the matter is for the two countries to resolve.

On Wednesday Trump told reporters, “I think I can get them to stop fighting,” and said he was scheduled to speak to both sides the next day, according to NBC News. Anwar said he had spoken with the leaders of both countries on Tuesday and, though no resolution was reached, appreciated “the openness and willingness of both leaders to continue negotiations in order to ease tensions.” Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said Thursday he would “explain and clarify” the situation if Trump called, adding, “Right now, no one wants conflict, especially with neighboring countries.”

Later reports showed how fragile any new arrangement was. The Associated Press, in versions published by CBS News and NBC News on Dec. 13 (later source), reported that Trump announced on Friday that both leaders had agreed to stop shooting, that Thai officials said they had not agreed to a ceasefire, and that Cambodia’s defense ministry said Thai jets carried out airstrikes on Saturday morning. France 24, citing AFP, reported on Dec. 13 (later source) that Thai fighter jets struck targets just hours after Trump said he had brokered a new ceasefire, and that Anutin vowed on Saturday to “continue fighting along the disputed border with Cambodia.”