Cambodia on Thursday demanded the immediate return of 20 soldiers it says were captured by Thai forces—hours after the two sides agreed to a ceasefire that was meant to halt the region’s deadliest border conflict in decades.
The demand, issued by Cambodian defence ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata, underscores the ongoing mistrust and volatility that continue to haunt relations between Phnom Penh and Bangkok. Her comments come amid efforts to consolidate a truce reached earlier this week after five days of intense cross-border combat that killed at least 43 people and displaced nearly 300,000 civilians.
“This is a matter of national dignity and humanitarian concern,” Socheata told reporters during a tense press briefing in Phnom Penh. “We call on the Thai side to send all 20 military personnel back to Cambodia as soon as possible. These men were taken after the ceasefire had been agreed upon and must be returned unconditionally.”
The captured troops, she said, were detained at approximately 7:50 a.m. on Tuesday—nearly eight hours after the ceasefire was to take effect at midnight. Cambodian officials insist the soldiers were conducting routine patrol duties within Cambodian territory when they were surrounded and disarmed by Thai troops.
Thailand has pushed back against accusations of a breach, stating that the soldiers were detained in a volatile zone where lines of control are often blurred. In a statement issued Wednesday, Thailand’s foreign ministry said the detained soldiers are being treated in accordance with international humanitarian law and Thai military protocols.
“The soldiers are safe, and we are working with our Cambodian counterparts to ensure a peaceful resolution,” the statement read. “They will be returned when the situation along the border allows for it.”
Despite these assurances, Cambodian officials have warned that any delay in the return of the captured soldiers could endanger the fragile ceasefire and reignite hostilities. “Our people have suffered enough,” Socheata said. “We must act now to build confidence and avoid plunging the region back into bloodshed.”
The call for calm was echoed by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk, who appealed to both nations to uphold their commitments. “This crucial agreement must be fully respected, in good faith, by both sides, as diplomatic efforts continue in a bid to resolve the root causes of the conflict,” Türk said in Geneva.
At the heart of the violence lies a bitter and unresolved territorial dispute over several ancient temples straddling the 800-kilometre-long Cambodia-Thailand border. The most prominent flashpoint is the Preah Vihear temple, a UNESCO World Heritage site perched atop a remote cliff in the Dângrêk Mountains. Though the International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 that the temple belonged to Cambodia, disagreements over adjacent land have persisted and periodically erupted into violence.
“The temples are more than just stones,” says Dr. Sarin Kosal, a historian at the Royal University of Phnom Penh. “They are symbols of cultural identity and national pride for both nations. Whenever politics become unstable in either country, these sites become lightning rods for nationalist sentiment.”
That appears to have been the case again in 2025, as domestic political crises in both countries have coincided with renewed friction on the frontier. In Cambodia, Prime Minister Hun Manet’s government has been facing growing pressure over inflation and corruption scandals. In Thailand, a fragile coalition government has struggled to maintain unity amid deep political polarization.
“The leaders may see conflict as a way to rally nationalist support and distract from internal challenges,” says Dr. Veera Rattanasuk, a political scientist at Thammasat University in Bangkok. “But the cost in human lives and regional stability is far too high.”
By Thursday morning, the human toll of the fighting was becoming tragically clear. Thailand has confirmed the deaths of 15 soldiers and 15 civilians, while Cambodia has acknowledged eight civilian deaths and five military fatalities. The combined death toll of 43 makes this the bloodiest episode in the border dispute since a prolonged standoff between 2008 and 2011 that left 28 dead and hundreds injured.
Even more alarming is the number of displaced people. According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), nearly 300,000 civilians have fled their homes in the affected regions, seeking shelter in hastily built camps or with relatives far from the combat zone.
“These are rural communities that rely on rice farming and rubber tapping for their livelihood,” says Khin Sokleap, a field officer for the Cambodian Red Cross in Banteay Meanchey province. “They have lost everything. Fields have been burned, homes destroyed, and families torn apart.”
Footage from both sides of the border shows harrowing scenes: smoke rising from shell-pocked villages, families trekking through forests with whatever possessions they could carry, and children crying amid the chaos.
“I don’t know where my husband is,” said 36-year-old Thai villager Ploy Sooksawang, speaking to local reporters in Sisaket province. “He went to check on the buffaloes and never came back.”
What set this latest flare-up apart from earlier border skirmishes was the scale and sophistication of the firepower involved. Cambodian officials say Thai fighter jets bombed several military outposts near the border, while Thai sources accuse Cambodian forces of launching Grad rockets into Thai villages. Both sides reportedly used drones for reconnaissance and artillery guidance.
Military analysts say the border region is now one of the most heavily militarized zones in mainland Southeast Asia. “We are seeing a worrying escalation not just in intensity but in the types of weapons used,” says Colonel Paul Schaefer, a defense attaché at the U.S. embassy in Kuala Lumpur. “This is not just small-arms fire and mortar shells anymore. This is full-spectrum conventional warfare in a very confined area.”
That concern prompted intervention from the international community. The United States, which has strategic and economic ties with both nations, played a crucial role in brokering the ceasefire. According to diplomatic sources, U.S. President Donald Trump personally spoke to both Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul earlier this week, warning that continued hostilities would jeopardize pending trade agreements.
“The threat of tariffs and trade isolation finally brought both sides to the table,” one diplomat told The Phnom Penh Herald on condition of anonymity. The truce was ultimately signed in Kuala Lumpur under Malaysian mediation, with UN and ASEAN observers present.
But the peace remains precarious. Despite official denials, sporadic gunfire and small-scale skirmishes have continued in some sectors. Villagers have reported hearing explosions at night, and both armies accuse each other of moving additional troops and weapons into the area.
“We remain on high alert,” Thai military spokesperson Gen. Arkhom Suthiphan said in Bangkok. “Our forces will defend Thai sovereignty and protect our citizens. Any violations will be met with proportional force.”
For its part, Cambodia insists that it remains committed to peace—but warned it would not tolerate what it calls “Thai aggression.” “We urge restraint,” said Maly Socheata, “but Cambodia will never surrender its rightful territory.”
The border dispute has regional ramifications far beyond the immediate vicinity. ASEAN, which has long struggled to enforce unity among its members on sensitive issues, faces yet another test of its diplomatic relevance.
“ASEAN’s ability to mediate and maintain peace between member states is on the line here,” says Dr. Chantira Yuwathida, an international relations scholar in Singapore. “If they fail to de-escalate this, it will erode the group’s credibility.”
Meanwhile, global powers like China and the U.S. are watching closely. Beijing has significant infrastructure investments in both Thailand and Cambodia as part of its Belt and Road Initiative and has called for calm. Washington, eager to counterbalance Chinese influence in the region, is also trying to mediate while protecting its economic interests.
“Both the U.S. and China have leverage, but they also risk being pulled deeper into a regional dispute they didn’t start,” says Col. Schaefer.
The return of the 20 Cambodian soldiers may serve as an early test of the ceasefire’s durability. Analysts say a successful resolution could set the tone for broader negotiations, including demilitarization of the disputed areas, joint development initiatives, and possibly even a new treaty recognizing mutual claims and historical grievances.
But that will require political will, patience, and a degree of humility that has often been lacking on both sides.
“Borders are man-made,” says historian Dr. Sarin. “But peace must be human-made too. That means listening to each other’s stories, not just counting each other’s dead.”
