Agreement follows talks aimed at ending weeks of deadly clashes along the Thailand-Cambodia border
\n Cambodia
\nThailand and Cambodia said they have signed a \u2060ceasefire \u200bagreement to end weeks of fierce fighting along their border that has killed more than 100 people and displaced more than half a million civilians in both countries.
\n\u201cBoth sides agree to an immediate ceasefire after the time of signature of this Joint Statement,\u201d \u200dthe Thai and Cambodian defence \u2060ministers said in a statement on Saturday.
\n\u201cBoth sides agree to maintain current troop deployments without further movement,\u201d the ministers said.
\nThe ceasefire took effect at noon local time (05:00 GMT) on Saturday and extends to \u201call types of weapons\u201d and \u201cattacks on civilians, civilian objects and infrastructures, and military objectives of either side, in all cases and all areas\u201d.
\nAl Jazeera\u2019s Assed Baig, reporting from the Cambodian border city of Poipet, said the \u201cguns seem to have fallen silent\u201d as both sides adhered to the truce.
\n\u201cBut I must tell you, right up until the point of that ceasefire being implemented, there was some intense firing going on\u2026 really, really intense \u2013 right up until that moment. And it kind of gives you the idea of how fragile this actually is,\u201d Baig said.
\n\u201cThat doesn\u2019t instil a great deal of confidence in people here who want to return home and will be watching if this ceasefire will hold,\u201d he said.
\nThe agreement, signed by Thai Defence Minister Natthaphon Narkphanit and his Cambodian counterpart Tea Seiha, \u200cends 20 days of fighting, the worst between the two Southeast Asian neighbours in years.
\nAs part of the deal, Thailand has agreed to return 18 Cambodian soldiers \u2013 captured in previous clashes \u2013 72 hours after the ceasefire \u201chas been fully maintained\u201d.
\nAt the same time, the two sides agreed to refrain from taking \u201cprovocative actions that may escalate tensions\u201d and avoid \u201cdisseminating false information\u201d in order to de-escalate tensions.
\nA team of observers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will monitor the implementation of the current agreement, the deal states, adding that both countries have also agreed to maintain open communication \u201cto resolve\u201d any possible issues on the ground.
\nOn Sunday, Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn is scheduled to travel to Yunnan, China, to hold a trilateral meeting with his Thai counterpart and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
\nThe meeting is being billed as a \u201cmutual confidence\u201d building initiative aimed at restoring \u201cpeace, security, and stability\u201d along the border, according to a statement on Saturday.
\nAl Jazeera\u2019s Baig reported that \u201cthe next 72 hours is crucial\u201d for the success of the truce and hundreds of thousands of displaced civilians will likely not make any move to return home until their safety is ensured.
\nThe conflict stems from territorial disputes along the neighbours \u2018 800-kilometre (500-mile) border, where ancient temples are claimed by both sides and colonial-era frontier demarcations have been resented by both countries for more than a century.
\nIn the most recent outbreak of violence, five days of fighting in July killed dozens of people before a truce was brokered by the United States, China and Malaysia. That truce was broken earlier this month.
\nEach side blamed the other for instigating the fresh fighting and have traded accusations of deliberate attacks on civilians.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Agreement follows talks aimed at ending weeks of deadly clashes along the Thailand-Cambodia border Cambodia Thailand and Cambodia said they have signed a \u2060ceasefire \u200bagreement to end weeks of fierce fighting along their border that has killed more than 100 people and displaced more than half a million civilians in both countries. \u201cBoth sides agree […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":522532,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-522523","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n