Fresh gunfire erupts on Cambodia–Thailand border as verification gap fuels cycle

Cambodian forces came under fire from Thai troops along the Preah Vihear border on December 7, 2025, Cambodia's Ministry of National Defence confirmed in a statement. The ministry reported that Thai forces used small arms, B40 rocket launchers, and 60mm mortars against Cambodian positions in Choam Ksan district. Casualty figures remain unverified, though emergency response teams were reportedly deployed to the border provinces. The incident marks the latest kinetic contact in a contested sector that has seen sporadic exchanges since a U.S.- and ASEAN-brokered ceasefire took effect in late July.

The firefight underscores a structural problem threatening border stability: without credible, independent fact-finding on ceasefire violations, landmine incidents, and first-shot attribution, each side's domestic audience accepts only its own narrative. This verification gap transforms tactical ambiguity—a patrol near an unclear boundary, a mine detonation in disputed terrain—into national-level pressure to respond, even as economic interdependence and diplomatic frameworks favor de-escalation. The December 7 clash in Preah Vihear illustrates how this cycle perpetuates itself across multiple flashpoints along the Dangrek Mountains.

Pattern of post-ceasefire incidents

The 2025 border crisis reignited on May 28 when a skirmish near Preah Vihear killed a Cambodian soldier. Fighting escalated dramatically on July 24, spreading across at least twelve sites including Ta Muen Thom and Preah Vihear sectors. Both governments accused the other of initiating fire. Thailand deployed F-16 airstrikes against Cambodian positions; Thai authorities reported Cambodian BM-21 rocket fire hitting civilian areas, citing at least 13–14 civilian deaths during July 24–27. Cambodia reported its own military and civilian casualties. Casualty and displacement figures from this period remain disputed, with competing assessments from both governments and international observers still undergoing verification.

A ceasefire was announced July 28 in Kuala Lumpur, encouraged by the United States and China and facilitated by ASEAN's Malaysian chair. Yet the truce has proven brittle. November saw gunfire exchanges in the Nong Ya Kaeo/Prey Chan area, with both sides alleging the other fired first. Thai media reported that Cambodian artillery hit Phanom Dong Rak Hospital in Surin province on November 3; Cambodia has alleged Thai strikes damaged sites on its side, including claims related to Preah Vihear temple environs—assertions that remain disputed. Thailand's Second Army Region ordered evacuations in four northeastern provinces after a Si Sa Ket clash in which two Thai soldiers were injured; Thai officials said Cambodian troops opened fire first and later employed recoilless rifles. Cambodia evacuates border village after deadly clash with Thailand in November illustrated the civilian displacement pressure accompanying these incidents.

The geographic focus of repeated clashes—Choam Ksan district, Preah Vihear, and nearby temple approaches—reflects the enduring ambiguity of the borderline. The 1962 International Court of Justice ruling awarded Preah Vihear temple to Cambodia, with a 2013 clarification on the immediate vicinity. Yet the status of surrounding high ground and access routes remains contested, rooted in divergent interpretations of the 1904 and 1907 Franco–Siamese treaties and French survey maps. This territorial uncertainty gives local commanders limited guidance and allows both capitals to frame tactical moves as defensive.

Exclusive Analysis Continues:

Members are reading: How landmine attribution disputes create a verification trap that no bilateral diplomacy can solve, and what neutral mechanisms could break the cycle.

Become a Member for Full Access

What credible verification could look like

Breaking the pattern requires moving beyond statements of restraint to practical confidence-building in the contested temple sectors. ASEAN-led observer teams, equipped with clear mandates to document incidents and patrol routes, would offer a less politically charged option than a UN mission—though only if both Bangkok and Phnom Penh grant genuine access and commit to accept findings. Joint technical committees to map legacy minefields, delineate temporary "no-go" zones during demining, and establish deconfliction lines near Preah Vihear and Ta Muen Thom could reduce the chance of accidental contact. Such measures require neither side to concede territorial claims, only to acknowledge that ambiguity itself is now the primary driver of violence.

Thailand-Cambodia Ceasefire: Economic Logic Overrides Territory highlighted the structural incentives—trade flows, supply-chain integration, and ASEAN cohesion—that favor de-escalation. Those incentives remain real. Yet without credible mechanisms to verify who did what on December 7, or where the mines that injured Thai soldiers were planted, economic logic will continue to lose ground to tactical friction and domestic political pressure. The next firefight in Preah Vihear's shadow is less a question of if than of when—unless verification closes the gap that competing narratives have opened.