Due to alleged breaches of a renewed truce, Thailand has stated that it is putting off the release of 18 Cambodian soldiers as a result of a ceasefire that was supposed to have broken the 72-hour window that was supposed to set them free.
Following the Sunday night intrusion of Cambodian drones into Thai airspace, Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Nikorndej Balankura stated on Tuesday that Bangkok had reconsidered the timing of the handover of the captured soldiers.
At a press conference, he said, “The security side is responsible for the decision regarding the release’s date and time,” adding that the handover might take place “early.”
More than 250 drones reportedly entered Thailand’s territory on Sunday night, according to a statement released on Monday from the Thai military, who had previously accused Cambodia of breaking the ceasefire’s terms.
Cambodian government spokesman Pen Bona said the situation was being looked at and there was no immediate response, according to a Reuters news agency.
If the ceasefire, which took effect on Saturday at noon (05:00 GMT), had been observed for 72 hours, the troops would have been handed over, as had earlier been the case in the most recent conflict between the two nations.
More than half a million people have been displaced and over 100 have been killed by both sides since the truce ended 20 days of fighting, which was officially ended by the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Cambodia following a landmine explosion at a border area on Monday that left a Thai soldier without a limb.
The most recent outbreak of conflict, which came to an end after five days of fighting in July, was brought under control by an American and Malaysian truce.
Sihasak Phuangketkeow, the country’s foreign minister, earlier said the ceasefire was fragile and needed to be resolved by both sides to avert rising tensions.
According to Sihasak, “there is fragility because the ceasefire has only just been agreed.” He advised caution against initiating or doing anything that might compromise the ceasefire.
Despite a ceasefire, many people are still living.
According to Assed Baig, a journalist from Poipet, a city in Cambodia, close to the Thai-Bahrain border, the ceasefire has caused an uneasy state of calm.
In the heat, hundreds of people waited for the truce’s onset to distribute necessary aid.
Some Cambodians reported being able to return to their homes despite their own fears or incapacity.
Some people say they will remain in the camps for internally displaced people because they are still unsure whether this ceasefire will end, he said.
They’ve witnessed ceasefires before, they claim. They’ve already witnessed them fail.
He claimed that some people were unable to return home because Thai soldiers remained stationed in or close to their villages, while others’ homes were destroyed in the fighting.
The two sides agreed that their troops would continue to be in their current positions in the terms of the ceasefire agreement on Saturday.
Source: Aljazeera
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