Thai-Cambodian mine row strains ceasefire

Thai and Cambodian forces remain at odds after a patrol incident near a disputed stretch of their border left a Thai soldier’s comrade with a severed ankle when he stepped on a landmine. The blast helped trigger five days of fighting in July that ended with a U.S.-brokered ceasefire and has since escalated into a diplomatic dispute over PMN-2 anti-personnel mines, a Soviet-era type that both countries have pledged not to use under the Ottawa Convention.

Thailand says PMN-2s were newly planted along parts of the frontier and have maimed at least six Thai soldiers since the July 16 blast. Bangkok provided photographs, video and documents showing demining operations between July 18–23 and presented images and recovered remnants it says are consistent with PMN-2 mines. Metadata on several images matches the timeframe of Thai military operations but lacks geolocation; independent verification of the exact locations was not possible.

Four independent landmine experts who reviewed the imagery said the devices depicted were PMN-2s and appeared freshly laid, though they could not identify who emplaced them. Cambodian authorities counter that visual evidence alone is inconclusive, arguing that soil movement, erosion or flooding can make older mines appear newer and emphasizing that fragment recognition from photos has limits.

Cambodia’s Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA) has called for an impartial third-party investigation and stated that Cambodia’s military does not hold live anti-personnel mines in stockpiles. Phnom Penh stresses its long-standing role in international demining: more than 30 years of clearance work, about $1 billion invested alongside donors, and thousands of square kilometres cleared since post-conflict efforts began after the 1991 peace accord. The CMAA also notes that PMN-2s were widely used during past conflicts in Cambodia and that many remnants remain across border areas.

The dispute has broader legal and diplomatic dimensions. Thailand has petitioned the Ottawa Convention’s compliance mechanisms and asked the U.N. secretary-general to seek Cambodia’s response; it is urging treaty parties to press Phnom Penh over alleged stockpiling and use. Cambodia denies the accusations and says some incidents involve legacy ordnance from decades of civil war rather than newly emplaced PMN-2s. International monitor Landmine Monitor warned that any use of anti-personnel mines by Cambodia would constitute a troubling reversal of its public commitments.