BANGKOK (Reuters) -Thailand has demanded an apology from Cambodia after accusing it of laying fresh landmines that have injured Thai soldiers, a foreign ministry official said on Wednesday, a day after Bangkok suspended a ceasefire pact brokered by U.S. President Donald Trump.
Cambodia denies the charge that it has laid new mines, including one that exploded on Monday and maimed one Thai soldier during a patrol along the disputed border between the two countries, reigniting tensions after a five-day conflict in July.
The fighting ended after telephone calls to Thai and Cambodian leaders by Trump, who also presided over the signing of an enhanced truce agreement in Malaysia last month.
At least 48 people were killed and an estimated 300,000 temporarily displaced during the clashes, which saw the exchange of rocket fire, heavy artillery and airstrikes.
“We want the Cambodian side to issue an apology,” Thai Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nikorndej Balankura told reporters.
“We asked them to find the facts on what happened and who is accountable, and with it, asked them to put in place measures to prevent the future recurrence of the situation.”
A Cambodian government spokesman declined to comment on Thailand’s demands.
On Tuesday, Cambodia’s defence ministry denied having laid new landmines and said it was committed to working with Bangkok in accordance with the deal.
Landmine blasts along disputed frontier areas were among the catalysts behind the border clashes, with at least seven Thai soldiers severely injured in as many mine-related incidents since July 16.
Some of these mines were likely newly laid, Reuters has reported, based on expert analysis of material shared by Thailand’s military.
For more than a century, the Southeast Asian neighbours have contested sovereignty over undemarcated points along their 817-km (508-mile) land border, first mapped in 1907 by France when it ruled Cambodia as a colony.
(Reporting by Panu Wongcha-um and Chayut Setboonsarng, Editing by David Stanway)
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