Following Trump’s arrival on Sunday, Thailand’s Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and his Cambodian counterpart Hun Manet signed a new joint statement, which was witnessed by US President and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. The agreement, which was also sealed with a handshake between the heads of government of Thailand and Cambodia, contains far-reaching language that reaffirms the “unwavering commitment to peace and security” of both countries.
“This is a momentous day for all people of Southeast Asia as we sign a historic agreement to end the military conflict between Cambodia and Thailand,” Trump said at the ceremony. He said when he left for Malaysia that he was proud to have brokered the agreement.
The agreement provides, among other things, for the release of 18 Cambodian prisoners of war who have been held for three months. Both sides also agreed to remove heavy weapons and landmines from the border area. In addition, a ceasefire monitoring team from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) is to be set up under the leadership of Anwar.
Thailand and Cambodia had already agreed on a ceasefire at the end of July. Since then, both sides have repeatedly accused each other of violations, but the ceasefire has largely held.
Five days of fighting between the two countries in July left at least 43 people dead and 300,000 others displaced. The latest fighting was a new escalation in the decades-long dispute over border demarcation in the so-called Emerald Triangle, where the Thai province of Surin and the Cambodian province of Oddar Meanchey and Laos border each other. The conflict is the result of unclear border demarcation by Cambodia’s former colonial power France in 1907.
The signing of the peace agreement on Sunday took place as part of the Asean summit in Malaysia, which Trump is attending. Trump then travels to Tokyo, where he planned to meet with the new Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Monday for talks.
On Wednesday, Trump is finally expected in South Korea, where the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit is taking place. There will be the first personal meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping since Trump returned to the White House on Thursday. On his departure from Washington, Trump said he would like to meet North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un.
A non-binding memorandum of understanding with Thailand announced by the White House shortly after the peace agreement was signed in Kuala Lumpur provides for increased cooperation in trade in critical raw materials such as rare earths. In a US trade agreement with Cambodia, import tariffs of 19 percent were also confirmed – a lower tariff rate than the 36 percent tariff that Trump had threatened Cambodia with.
On Sunday, Trump also signed a trade agreement with Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar that improves US access to rare earths. Malaysia is committed to “ensuring that no restrictions are imposed on the sale of rare earths to US companies,” the White House said in a joint statement.
Malaysia also pledged to accelerate the development of its critical raw materials sector in collaboration with US companies. U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the agreement would make investment and trade in critical raw materials “as free and as resilient as possible.”
According to its own figures from 2023, Malaysia has around 16.2 million tonnes of untapped rare earth deposits. Such raw materials are used in semiconductors, electric cars and wind turbines. China recently announced export restrictions on rare earths. Trump then threatened Beijing with 100 percent tariff surcharges.
