The leaders of Thailand and Cambodia signed an enhanced ceasefire deal on Sunday in the presence of Donald Trump, who in July helped to bring an end to their deadly five-day border conflict.
The US president watched as the Cambodian prime minister, Hun Manet, and the Thai prime minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, signed the expanded ceasefire at the annual summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) in Malaysia, soon after Trump’s arrival.
The agreement included Thailand releasing 18 Cambodian soldiers held prisoner and for both sides to begin removing heavy weapons from the border area.
It builds on a truce reached three months ago after Trump called the then leaders of the two countries and urged them to end hostilities or risk putting their respective trade talks with Washington on hold.
After the ceasefire ceremony Trump signed an agreement with Cambodia on reciprocal trade and a US deal with Thailand on critical minerals. A White House official said Trump would also sign a critical minerals agreement with Malaysia while in Kuala Lumpur.
Trump has begun a five-day trip to Malaysia, Japan and South Korea, his first visit to the region since taking office in January. He is expected to take part in high-stakes trade talks with China’s leader, Xi Jinping, on the final day of his trip.
Trump’s arrival in Malaysia came soon after he announced on Saturday that he would raise US tariffs on Canada by 10% in retaliation for an anti-tariff advertisement sponsored by the Ontario government, which has further strained one of the world’s largest trade partnerships.
Trump and the Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, will both attend the Asean summit in Malaysia, but Trump told reporters traveling with him that he had no intention of meeting Carney there.
With Reuters and the Associated Press
