By Panu Wongcha-um
BANGKOK/PHNOM PENH, Dec 15 (Reuters) – Thailand’s military said on Monday that it has stopped fuel shipments passing through a border checkpoint with Laos because of fears they were being diverted to Cambodia, with which it is fighting a fierce border conflict.
The Thai and Cambodian militaries are clashing at multiple locations along their 817 km (508 mile) land border, both sides said, with no signs of the fighting abating despite international efforts to negotiate a ceasefire, including calls by U.S. President Donald Trump.
A special meeting of Southeast Asian foreign ministers – where top diplomats from both sides could have met – that was scheduled to take place on Tuesday had been pushed back to December 22 at Thailand’s request, the Malaysian foreign ministry said in a statement.
The neighbours have long disputed sections of the frontier, but the scale and intensity of the latest clashes – that stretch from forested inland areas near the Laos border to coastal provinces – are unprecedented in recent history.
Over half a million people have been displaced by the fighting, which has killed at least 38 on both sides over the past eight days, according to national authorities, who mounted a round of evacuations in July when the neighbours clashed for five days before Trump helped broker a truce.
RESTRICTIONS AT LAOS BORDER CROSSING
Thailand’s military has restricted the movement of all fuel supplies through the Chong Mek border crossing into Laos after receiving intelligence that these were being routed to Cambodian troops, said Thai defence ministry spokesperson Rear Admiral Surasant Kongsiri.
“Our intention is not to cause impacts on the Lao people or government,” he said at a press conference.
The Laotian Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
The military is also considering limiting the movement of Thai vessels into “high-risk areas” in Cambodian waters where they could be fired upon, a navy official said, adding that any such measures would not impact shipments from other countries.
A sizeable portion of Cambodia’s refined fuel imports such as gasoline, gasoil and jet fuel comes via the sea route, according to multiple trade sources, though an exact percentage of market share could not be confirmed.
Singapore is currently the largest supplier of these fuels to Cambodia, Kpler ship-tracking data showed, with volumes so far this year totaling around 915,000 metric tons.
Volumes from Thailand have fallen to around 30,000 tons this year, from less than 180,000 tons last year, the data showed.
In a statement issued on Friday, Thailand’s energy ministry said there had been no exports of oil to Cambodia after July.
DRONE ATTACKS AND AIRSTRIKES
Fighting is continuing at least nine locations along the frontier, with heavy exchanges of firing across four border provinces, including at the coast, Thai defence ministry spokesperson Surasant said.
Cambodia said Thai forces had used drones and heavy artillery at multiple areas, alongside deploying its F-16 fighter jets for airstrikes in Siem Reap Province, which houses the country’s second-largest city and the major tourist centre of Angkor Wat.
“It is also noteworthy that the number of fighter jets and cluster bombs used by the Thai military to attack Cambodia has been increasing significantly,” Maly Socheata, Cambodia Defence Ministry spokesperson, said in a briefing.
Thailand’s military is vastly superior to that of its neighbour, including a much larger navy and one of the best-equipped and trained air forces in Southeast Asia that has a fleet of 28 F-16s and 11 Swedish Gripen fighter jets.
Thailand and Cambodia accuse each other of moves that led to a breakdown of July’s Trump-brokered truce, which was expanded into a wider agreement to help settle the conflict in October.
Bangkok insists that any end to the current fighting must start with a cessation of hostilities by the other side and a clear ceasefire proposal, even as Phnom Penh maintains that it is defending itself against military actions by its neighbours.
(Reporting by Panu Wongcha-um, Additional reporting by Trixie Yap and Chayut Setboonsarng; Writing by Devjyot Ghoshal; Editing by Stephen Coates)
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