How Thailand-Cambodia conflict went from Trump-backed ceasefire to airstrikes

Thailand said it had launched air strikes along its disputed border with Cambodia on Monday, after both countries accused the other of breaching a ceasefire agreement brokered by US President Donald Trump.

Here are key moments in the border conflict.

May 28, 2025: Cambodia’s defence ministry says one of its soldiers is killed after a brief exchange of gunfire with Thai soldiers at a disputed border area, the first such deadly clash since 2011.

July 23: Thailand recalls its ambassador to Cambodia and says it will expel Cambodia’s ambassador, following a landmine incident that injured a Thai soldier along the disputed border.

July 24: Armed clashes erupt along the border. Both sides accuse the other of opening fire first. Thailand deploys F-16 jets, one of which bombs a Cambodian military target.

July 25: Fighting intensifies and spreads with heavy artillery fire and rocket attacks across multiple frontlines, marking their worst clashes in more than a decade. Fighting in the days that follow kills at least 48 people — mostly civilians — and an estimated 300,000 residents are displaced.

July 26: Trump calls leaders of both countries and says both agreed to meet soon to work out a ceasefire, adding their respective talks with Washington on trade tariffs could resume once a truce is in place.

July 28: After efforts by Malaysia, the United States and also China to bring both sides to the table, the two countries’ leaders sign an agreement in Malaysia’s Putrajaya to end hostilities, resume direct communications and create a mechanism to implement the ceasefire.

October 26: The leaders of Thailand and Cambodia sign an enhanced ceasefire deal in the presence of Trump, whose intervention in their fierce border conflict earned him a Nobel Peace Prize nomination from Cambodia. The agreement builds on the truce signed three months earlier.

November 1: As part of the agreement, both countries say they have begun the phased withdrawal of heavy weapons from the disputed border, starting with rocket systems, and conducting de-mining operations. Cambodia says it expects the withdrawal to be fully completed by end of the year.

November 11: Thailand says it is halting implementation of the ceasefire pact with Cambodia a day after a landmine blast maimed a Thai soldier. Cambodia’s defence ministry denies having laid new landmines.

November 12: At least one person is killed in Cambodia as the neighbours accused each other of opening fire.

December 8: Thailand launches air strikes after it said its troops came under Cambodian fire. Both countries accuse the other of breaching the ceasefire agreement and Thai authorities say hundreds of thousands of civilians are being evacuated.