China takes mediation role in Thai-Cambodian conflict, calls for restraint
As clashes continued on Friday, UN envoy Fu Cong expressed Beijing’s hopes that the situation would stabilise soon
Fu also urged the two nations to “exercise restraint” and “stabilise the situation” during the interview.
“Cambodia and Thailand are not only China’s good neighbours, but also friendly neighbours to each other and important members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations,” he said.
“Asean has a long-standing tradition of resolving differences through peaceful means, and we hope that peace will once again prevail in this case.”
Thai and Cambodian armies clashed along their shared border on Thursday, in a major escalation that included artillery fire and rockets. The conflict has led to multiple deaths within 24 hours, believed to be mostly civilians.
Thailand and Cambodia have long-standing border disputes, primarily over contested areas near ancient temples. The sudden clash is believed to be related to a landmine explosion in a contested area on Wednesday that wounded five Thai soldiers.
Thailand accused Cambodia of laying new landmines in the contested border area, but the latter denied the charge and said the device might be a leftover from its civil war, which ended in 1975.
Liu Zongyi, a senior fellow with the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies, said the conflict is likely to remain contained, with both China and Asean prioritising regional stability.
Earlier this month, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held discussions with his Thai and Cambodian counterparts at an Asean-China summit in Kuala Lumpur, as Beijing took steps to de-escalate its neighbours’ border dispute.
In his meeting with Maris Sangiampongsa, the Thai foreign minister, Wang expressed Beijing’s hope that both sides would act with “goodwill towards each other” and “properly resolve the issue through friendly dialogue and consultation”.
Wang added that China aimed to “play a constructive role” in resolving the conflict, according to a Chinese foreign ministry transcript.
In a separate discussion with Cambodia’s deputy prime minister Prak Sokhonn, who also serves as foreign minister, Wang emphasised that China would “maintain an impartial, fair and just stance” in addressing “the needs of the parties concerned”.
“The issue will eventually be solved through diplomacy … as both Thailand and Cambodia are members of Asean, both China and Asean will play a very proactive role in mediating this issue,” Liu said.
According to Liu, there are advantages in Beijing taking a mediation role because the country is close to both Bangkok and Phnom Penh.
On Thursday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said in the regular daily briefing that Beijing would “promote peace talks in its own way”, urging the two nations to “resolve differences appropriately”.
“We are deeply concerned about the current developments and hope that both sides will resolve the issue through dialogue and consultation,” he said. “China upholds a fair and impartial stance and has been and will continue to promote peace talks in its own way.”
Amid the escalating conflict, China’s embassies in both Thailand and Cambodia have issued advisories warning its citizens not to approach the border.
According to Thailand’s defence ministry, at least six areas along the border have seen exchanges of fire since Thursday. The conflict continued on Friday, the Cambodian army said.
Several media outlets have reported that Thailand has conducted air strikes using the US-made F-16 fighter jet.
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Thailand is the third largest buyer of arms from China, following Pakistan and Serbia, with Chinese weapons accounting for around 44 per cent of its major military imports in recent years.