THAILAND imposed a curfew in five districts of its southeastern Trat province on Sunday as fighting with Cambodia intensified and spread towards coastal areas, signalling a sharp escalation in a long-running border dispute that has already displaced hundreds of thousands of civilians on both sides.
The move came just two days after former United States president Donald Trump said Thailand and Cambodia had agreed to halt hostilities, raising fresh doubts over prospects for an immediate ceasefire.
“Overall, there have been clashes continuously” since Cambodia once again reiterated its openness to a ceasefire on Saturday, Reuters cited Thai Defence Ministry spokesman Rear Admiral Surasant Kongsiri telling a press conference in Bangkok following the curfew announcement.
Thailand, he said, remains open to diplomacy, but stressed that negotiations could only begin if fighting stops. “Cambodia has to cease hostility first before we can negotiate,” he added.
The curfew applies to five mainland districts in Trat that border Cambodia’s Koh Kong province, although it excludes the popular tourist islands of Koh Chang and Koh Kood. Thailand has already imposed a separate curfew in eastern Sa Kaeo province, which remains in effect.
Thai forces said on Saturday that they had destroyed a bridge allegedly used by Cambodia to transport heavy weapons and military equipment into the disputed zone, and launched operations targeting pre-positioned artillery in Cambodia’s coastal Koh Kong province. Cambodia, however, accused Thailand of striking civilian infrastructure.
The two Southeast Asian neighbours have exchanged heavy-weapons fire at multiple points along their 817-kilometre border since Monday, marking some of the most intense fighting since a five-day confrontation in July that ended through mediation involving Malaysia and Trump.
Trump said on Friday that he had spoken separately with Thailand’s caretaker prime minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, and that both sides had agreed to “cease all shooting”.
However, Anutin struck a defiant tone a day later, vowing that Thailand would continue military operations “until we feel no more harm and threats to our land and people”.
Thai authorities subsequently confirmed that no ceasefire agreement had been finalised and that military operations would continue along the disputed frontier.
A White House spokesperson later said Trump expected all parties to honour their commitments, adding that “he will hold anyone accountable as necessary to stop the killing and ensure durable peace”.
The renewed violence follows months of instability along the border, reignited after a Cambodian soldier was killed in a skirmish in May.
Despite repeated diplomatic overtures, the conflict has continued to flare, with the latest developments highlighting the growing risk of wider regional instability. - December 14, 2025
