Cambodia seeks Kuala Lumpur venue for truce talks with Thailand after renewed border clashes

This is based on a letter seen by AFP and confirmed by Cambodian officials on Tuesday.

The request comes amid continued hostilities that have killed at least 44 people and displaced more than 900,000 civilians on both sides of the Thai-Cambodian border, officials from the two countries said.

In the letter dated Monday, Cambodian Defence Minister Tea Seiha wrote to his Thai counterpart, Nattaphon Narkphanit, urging that the meeting be moved to a “safe and neutral venue” due to ongoing fighting along the frontier.

He said Malaysia, the current chair of ASEAN, had agreed to host the talks in its capital.

Thailand had earlier announced that the discussions would take place on Wednesday in Chanthaburi province under the framework of an existing bilateral border committee.

Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow said on Monday that Bangkok and Phnom Penh had agreed to resume talks after a meeting with ASEAN foreign ministers in Kuala Lumpur.

However, Cambodia said fighting continued despite the announcement.

The Cambodian defence ministry had accused Thailand of launching air strikes on its territory on Monday, while shelling was reported on Tuesday near the border city of Poipet.

Despite this, Thai authorities have not publicly commented on those specific allegations.

Cambodian defence ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata told reporters that clashes were ongoing on Tuesday morning, underscoring the fragility of the situation and the urgency of negotiations.

The latest violence has shattered a previous truce between the two neighbours, whose long-running border dispute has periodically flared into armed confrontations.