Cambodia, Thailand to Attend ASEAN Meeting Dec. 22 as China, EU Push for Border Truce

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec. 18, 2025) — Cambodia and Thailand have agreed to attend a special ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ meeting on December 22 in Kuala Lumpur to begin talks aimed at preventing further escalation along their disputed border, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said Wednesday.

Anwar said the meeting, originally scheduled for December 16, was postponed after several ASEAN leaders warned it was too soon amid heightened clashes.

“Most prime ministers alerted me that it was probably too soon to hold a meeting before tensions could ease,” Anwar told editors during a briefing at Seri Perdana. “So they proposed it be held on December 22 in Kuala Lumpur.”

He said the purpose of the meeting is to persuade both sides to halt further escalation and move toward a truce.

“We are appealing to them to immediately stop the front-line offensive, and if possible, an immediate ceasefire,” Anwar said, noting both sides were reluctant to use the term “ceasefire” as it could imply formal agreement.

Anwar added that Malaysia was in daily contact with regional counterparts and that the decision to convene the meeting followed discussions with U.S. President Donald Trump.

He said both Cambodia and Thailand had agreed to the deployment of an ASEAN Observer Team, with Malaysia’s Chief of Defence Force expected to travel to the border in the coming days.

The talks come as international actors step up involvement. China announced that its Special Envoy for Asian Affairs would again travel to Cambodia and Thailand in a shuttle-diplomacy effort to ease tensions.

Beijing urged both sides to exercise “maximum restraint” and pledged to play a constructive role in supporting dialogue.

The European Union also weighed in. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said Brussels was prepared to provide satellite imagery to help monitor any ceasefire.

“The conflict between Thailand and Cambodia must not be allowed to spiral further. That’s why the ceasefire needs to be immediately restored,” she said, adding that she had conveyed the message directly to both foreign ministers.

Cambodia and Thailand remain locked in renewed border skirmishes despite signing the Kuala Lumpur Peace Accord in October. The agreement was suspended by Thailand in November after its soldiers were injured by landmines along the frontier.