Malaysia seeks deployment of ASEAN team to monitor restive Thai-Cambodian border crisis

Malaysia has moved to activate a regional monitoring mechanism as fighting along the Thailand–Cambodia border intensifies, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said on Saturday, warning that the latest clashes threaten wider instability in Southeast Asia.

Anwar said he informed the leaders of Thailand and Cambodia that Malaysia has formally requested the deployment of an ASEAN Observer Team to track developments along the disputed frontier, where deadly confrontations have erupted repeatedly in recent months. The initiative followed separate phone calls with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, after Anwar also spoke with US President Donald Trump.
In a post on X, Anwar said he conveyed “grave concern” over the deteriorating security situation and urged both sides to show maximum restraint, halt all hostilities and avoid any forward movement of armed forces. He said Malaysia proposed that the cessation of military actions take effect from 13 December at 10:00 pm local time.
To help defuse tensions and ensure transparency, Anwar said the ASEAN Observer Team, to be led by Malaysia’s Chief of Defence Forces, would be deployed on the ground and supported by satellite surveillance capabilities provided by the United States. He said findings from both field observations and satellite imagery would be compiled into a report to be presented at Tuesday’s ASEAN foreign ministers’ meeting, offering an objective assessment to support accountability, confidence-building and regional stability.
Thailand and Cambodia gave differing responses. Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul was quoted by local media as saying it was premature to speak of a ceasefire, insisting that conditions were not yet right for formal truce negotiations. Cambodia, however, welcomed the proposal, with Hun Manet saying Phnom Penh supported an immediate ceasefire monitored by ASEAN observers with US participation.
The latest fighting has displaced an estimated 700,000 people on both sides of the border, officials said, with at least 33 deaths reported since Monday. Cambodia has confirmed 11 civilian deaths, while Thailand has reported the deaths of 15 soldiers and seven civilians, along with more than 290 injured security personnel.
The neighbours signed a peace agreement in Kuala Lumpur in October, but it was later suspended following a landmine blast that seriously wounded Thai soldiers. Long-standing border disputes, including clashes in July that killed at least 48 people, continue to fuel tensions despite repeated mediation efforts.