Thailand and Cambodia have agreed “to an immediate and unconditional ceasefire”, that’s according to Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. “We have seen a very positive development and results that could augur well for Cambodia and Thailand.”
The ceasefire announcement followed talks between Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Manet and Thailand’s acting PM Phumtham Weychayachai, at Anwar Ibrahim’s residence. The key question is whether this will hold and for how long? Or is there a path towards a permanent resolution?
Suchitra Durai, who served as India’s ambassador in Thailand for four years, retiring in 2022, pointed out that “This is a very old dispute, and there is a strong feeling on both sides.”
But as she underscored in a chat on The Gist, “Confidence between the two governments was of a high order. In fact, even cabinet meetings were held very interestingly, you know, in both capitals, joint cabinet meetings, it showed that there was, there’s a high degree of convergence and cooperation.”
In fact, the Shinawatra family in Thailand and Hun Manet’s family including his father Hun Sen, were very close and former PM Thaksin Shinawatra during his long years in exile after being ousted by the army, was an economic adviser to Hun Sen. This is something which is common to the region.
But it may be that Hun Sen had expectations from Thaksin that was not delivered. How else does one explain a confidential conversation between him and Thaksin’s daughter Paetongtarn, when she was prime minister, being leaked triggering her suspension.
Hun Sen may have felt let down when a joint plan for exploration of the Gulf of Thailand for gas deposits fell by the wayside. Then there was the crackdown on scam centres based in Cambodia but operating on electricity supplied by Thailand.
There’s also speculation that the politically powerful Thai Army may have played a role. Whatever happened, it’s clear that if an election were held now the Pheu Thai party of the Shinawatra family could lose.
Tune in for more in this conversation with Suchitra Durai, former ambassador to Thailand.
