Cambodia and Thailand Face Border War, Compete in SEA Games

PHNOM PENH, TUESDAY - Cambodia has confirmed that seven of its citizens were killed as a result of an attack by Thailand. The assault occurred one day before the opening of the 2025 SEA Games in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Cambodia has reduced the size of its contingent for the Southeast Asian sports event.

The spokesperson for the Cambodian Ministry of Defense, Lieutenant General Maly Socheata, stated that Thailand launched an attack on December 8-9, 2025. The sounds of the attack were still heard on Tuesday (December 9, 2025) just before 6 a.m. The Thai assault resulted in the deaths of seven individuals and injured 20 others.

Thailand used a number of fighter jets and unmanned aerial vehicles to attack Cambodia from Monday morning until early Tuesday morning WIB. Bangkok accused Phnom Penh of violating the ceasefire declaration announced on October 26, 2025.

The attack on Monday, according to Bangkok, was a response to the gunfire on Sunday. The incident resulted in the death of one Thai soldier and four Cambodian civilians. "We used airstrikes to defend ourselves," said Thai Army Spokesperson Winthai Suvaree.

He stated that the attacks only targeted military points in Cambodia. Thailand is not aiming at locations with civilian presence. The fighting has spread along the border of the two countries. Thailand and Cambodia share a border that stretches 800 kilometers.

Both countries are blaming each other as the instigators of the turmoil. As a result of the conflict, 35,000 Thai citizens have been displaced. Previously, in July, Thailand and Cambodia also experienced a conflict that resulted in 43 deaths and a total of 300,000 citizens being displaced.

The United Nations and the European Union have promptly urged both parties to exercise restraint and prioritize diplomacy. The United States government has advised its citizens to exercise caution when in Thailand or Cambodia.

Despite the renewed outbreak of fighting, Cambodia has confirmed that its athletes who have already traveled to Thailand will still participate in the 2025 SEA Games. This assurance was conveyed by the Secretary General of the National Olympic Committee of Cambodia (NOCC) Vath Chamroeun and the Head of the Cambodian Sports Delegation Nan Sok Isaou. They made this statement during a meeting of representatives of the participants of the 2025 SEA Games on Monday afternoon in Bangkok.

Cambodia has sent athletes for the sports of taekwondo, swimming, jujitsu, gymnastics, athletics, jet ski, e-sports, equestrian, kickboxing, fencing, and triathlon. However, for football, petanque, wrestling, karate, and judo, no athletes were sent. Out of 333 individuals, Cambodia has only dispatched 150 athletes.

Chamroeun stated that the cancellation was for security reasons. "Reducing the number of athletes makes it easier for us to maintain control (of security). The safety of the athletes is a priority," he said.

"We are placing all Cambodian athletes and officials in the same hotel under tight security," said the Head of the Thai Delegation, Thana Chaiprasit, to the Khaosod daily, Tuesday (9/12/2025).

The Cambodian delegation has been requested not to wear their national jerseys or insignia when going out. In addition, Thai citizens are also urged not to engage in provocative actions, such as making taunts or derogatory calls. "Let us show that the Thai community behaves sportsmanlike," said Thana.

The theme of the 2025 SEA Games is We Are One. This theme invites ASEAN citizens to return to the spirit of brotherhood. Although there are issues, they should be resolved in a peaceful manner.

In October 2025, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), China, and the United States mediated between Cambodia and Thailand. U.S. President Donald Trump witnessed the signing of the Cambodia-Thailand peace agreement during the ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

However, on November 11, Thailand announced it was suspending the ceasefire. A soldier was seriously injured after stepping on a Cambodian landmine.

Cambodia, on the other hand, claims it never planted landmines. Since then, relations between the two neighboring countries have deteriorated again.

The landmines are remnants of the Cambodian civil war, but Thailand does not believe this. Cambodia has also accused Thailand of refusing to return the civilians they have captured.

"There is no one who can tell us to stop defending ourselves. If you want this conflict to end, tell the attacking party to stop their aggression," said Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul.

Conversely, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet accused Thailand of seeking excuses to attack Cambodian citizens. "This military reduction is Thailand's pretext to seize our territory," he stated.

The territorial dispute has been ongoing since 1907. At that time, France, as the colonizer of Cambodia, established the country's map. Thailand did not agree with this map and considered several areas along the border as part of the Kingdom of Thailand.

Thailand also did not accept the International Court's decision in 1962 which established that Thailand's claim over the territory was invalid. The territory is part of the Kingdom of Cambodia. Conflicts also occurred in 2008 and 2011.

Both Thailand and Cambodia are approaching the United States. Thailand is a close ally of the US. Meanwhile, Cambodia is trying to win over Trump by nominating him for the Nobel Peace Prize. In fact, Cambodia even held a parade for that purpose.

This conflict threatens the tourism of both countries. November to February is winter in northern countries. Typically, their citizens travel to tropical countries for vacation.

Thailand and Cambodia are very popular tourist destinations. If the conflict is not resolved promptly, the largest source of foreign exchange for both countries is at risk of becoming unviable. Tourists will be reluctant to travel to areas affected by conflict. (AP/AFP/Reuters)