By Wu Qiaoxi | 2025-11-05

With Malaysia's mediation and US support, the leaders of Thailand and Cambodia signed the Kuala Lumpur Peace Accord during the ASEAN summit, marking a major breakthrough in regional diplomacy.

The accord, if successful, would end a conflict that started in February and led to combat in May and July.

The signing took place in Kuala Lumpur October 26. Observers described the accord as an "enhanced version" of a preliminary ceasefire agreement reached in late July.

Thailand is preparing to release 18 Cambodian troops it has held since clashes in July, Malaysia's The Star reported November 5.

Cambodia is required to withdraw artillery and rocket systems from the frontier under the first phase of the demilitarization agreement.

The accord became possible through the combined diplomatic efforts of ASEAN and the United States.

Malaysia's bridge-builder role

Malaysia, the ASEAN chair in 2025, launched several rounds of closed-door negotiations and gained unanimous support to lead mediation. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim described the ceasefire as "concrete evidence of Asean's diplomatic strength," Malay Mail reported.

The ASEAN chairmanship rotates every year.

As Cambodian-Thai tensions mounted, Malaysia emerged as the natural mediator.

"They have full confidence in Malaysia and asked me to be a mediator," said Malaysian Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan in July, after speaking with his counterparts in Cambodia and Thailand, who agreed that no other country should be involved in the issue.

Under Article 23 of the ASEAN Charter, the chair may provide "good offices, conciliation or mediation," but only when all parties consent. True to ASEAN's non-interventionist principle, Malaysia waited until both sides formally requested mediation before taking the helm.

Long-festering conflict erupts

The conflict has left at least 48 people dead and about 300,000 displaced, one of the worst border crises in recent history between the two neighbors. It began in February, when Thai police reportedly stopped Cambodian tourists from singing their national anthem at the Prasat Ta Moan Thom temple. In May, armed clashes erupted, and violence escalated quickly.

By late July, after another five days of intense border fighting, Malaysia's mediation -- backed by Washington -- brought both sides to the table. The two governments signed a preliminary ceasefire on July 28.

Key provisions of the October peace accord include military de-escalation, the withdrawal of heavy weapons, establishment of an ASEAN Observer Team to monitor disengagement, mine-clearing operations and the release of prisoners of war.

Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said the accord reflects "our will to resolve differences peacefully in full respect of sovereignty and territorial integrity." Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet added that disputes "must be resolved peacefully, no matter how difficult or complex our dispute may be."

Regional test remains; China was absent

The signing marks a diplomatic milestone for ASEAN but implementation depends on domestic politics and regional dynamics, say analysts.

Thailand and Cambodia have repeatedly violated previous ceasefires and sporadic clashes between villagers and security forces indicate persistent tensions, Abdul Rahman Yaacob, a security scholar at Australian National University in Canberra, told the South China Morning Post (SCMP).

He pointed out China's "conspicuous absence" from the process.

Although Beijing is the largest arms supplier to both nations, it failed to exert tangible pressure. "They [Cambodia] were hoping that China could have applied pressure on Thailand to cease the fighting," he said.

At the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Seoul October 31, Malaysia's Anwar described the agreement as a symbol of ASEAN's growing diplomatic capacity. "Resolutions based on dialogue, not force, is the only way towards true peace," he said.

Domestic political motives could revive nationalism and border tension, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, a political science professor at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, told the SCMP.

The contested border is "porous and long" and requires extensive monitoring, Yaacob the Australian scholar told the SCMP.

"A large number of observers will be needed to monitor the situation and facilitate the peace effort and border dispute resolution," he said, warning that without sustained ASEAN commitment of personnel and resources, implementation will remain a long-term challenge.