Thailand threatens to suspend truce deal with Cambodia after a land mine injures troops

BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand threatened on Monday to suspend a U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement with Cambodia, with the country’s prime minister saying all actions under the deal will be halted, just hours after a land mine explosion in the volatile border area injured two Thai soldiers.

Thailand and Cambodia signed a truce agreement at a summit in Malaysia last month, after territorial disputes between the two Southeast Asian neighbors led to a five-day deadly combat in late July that killed dozens.

Tensions have simmered and there have been similar land mine explosions — both before and after the clashes, including one that injured three Thai soldiers patrolling the border zone in August.

Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said Monday’s incident shows that “the hostility towards our national security has not decreased as we thought it would,” adding that all actions to be carried out under the truce agreement will be halted until Thailand’s demands are met.

He did not elaborate on Thailand’s demands and there was no immediate response from the Cambodian government.

Under the terms of the agreement, Thailand is to release 18 Cambodian soldiers held prisoner and both sides are to begin removing heavy weapons and land mines from the border area.

The Royal Thai Army said a sergeant had lost his right foot after stepping on a land mine while on patrol Monday along the border in Sisaket province, while another soldier suffered a tightness in his chest from the impact of the blast. It said both soldiers were receiving treatment at a hospital.

Thai Defense Minister Natthaphon Narkphanit said the army is still investigating whether the mine was old or was newly laid. He added that Thailand will postpone the release of the captured Cambodian soldiers, initially scheduled for later this week.

The two sides said there has been some progress on arms removal but Thailand accuses Cambodia of obstructing the mine clearance process. Cambodia says it’s committed to all terms in the agreement, including demining, and urged Thailand to release its soldiers as soon as possible.

Thailand has accused Cambodia of laying new mines in violation of the truce, which the Cambodian government denies.

The ceasefire was initially mediated by Malaysia and U.S. President Donald Trump later threatened to withhold trade privileges unless both Cambodia and Thailand agreed on a truce and the deal was signed during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in October.