The political feud behind the fight

Cambodia and Thailand has a history of accidental conflict.

The two countries share long and foresight with regions that claim both sides. There were dangerous exchanges of fire in the past as well – in 2008 and 2011, clashes witnessed a similar scale that 40 people were killed.

However, the escalation was relatively canceled.

Even recently, in May, after an accident in which a Kambodi soldier was killed, both sides seemed keen to prevent more violence, with meetings between army leaders from every country aimed at reducing tension.

But on July 24, it erupted. The Thai authorities say that 14 people, all of whom are civilians regardless of one, were killed.

Cambodia has not yet confirmed whether she suffers from any victims.

Why did these special border skirmishes – which started after five Thai soldiers were injured in a land brown explosion on Wednesday – to something much larger?

Relations between the two countries deteriorated sharply last month, when the leading senior Cambodia Hun Sen embarrassed Paetongtarn Shinawatra by leaking a phone conversation between them on the disputed border.

In the conversation, Paetongtarn called it “Uncle”, and one of its military leaders criticized it, which sparked public anger. She has been suspended since then as Prime Minister and the Thailand Constitutional Court considering seeking to dismiss her.

It is not clear why Hun Sen chose to do this, and burned a close personal relationship between their families dating back to decades.

Many people have erred in Paetongtarn to conversation with Hun Sen. It seems that she believes that she can solve their differences by attracting his friendship with his father, former Prime Minister Thaxin Shinwatra.

In the past, this friendship was used by Thakseen’s opponents to accuse him of placing the interests of Cambodia over the interests of Thailand.

In 2014, when a government headed by the sister of Thaksin Yingluk was removed due to a military coup, Hun Sen allowed his supporters to search for a haven in Cambodia.

Countries also cooperate in more mysterious areas.

Last November, Thailand sent six Cambodian dissidents, with a young child, to Cambodia, where they were immediately imprisoned. All of them were recognized by the United Nations as refugees.

In 2020, a Thai activist was kidnapped, a young man who fled to Cambodia, Wanchaler Satsaksit, disappeared, and is supposed to be by Thai activists.

The activists also view the activists in January from the leader of the Cambodian opposition in broad daylight in central Bangkok as a result of this understanding between the security services of the two countries.

On this background, the Paetongtarn conversation leakage appears to have completely caught the Shinawatra family.

Thaksin and Paetongtarn responses reveal a sense of treason. This led to a bitter war of words between the two countries.

But they are more than just words.

Thai police have also started investigating strong compassionate businesses who are claiming to be linked to the world’s gambling and fraud centers, while the value of billions of dollars stopped annually.

On the same borders, there is an increasing risk of the most dangerous clashes between the two armies.

But instead of retreating, it seems that Cambodia Hun Sen has jumped to the opportunity to intensify the speech against Thailand and the Shinwatra family in particular.

He claims that in possession of secret documents that criminalize Thaxin – documents that he claims can prove that he insulted the monarchy, a crime that comes with the huge prison sentence in Thailand.

The Thai government responded by expelling Ambassador Al -Kamboudi on Wednesday and remembering its own envoy, which paves the way for the latest confrontation.

At the present time, none of the two sides seems ready to decline. In both countries, there is a lack of leadership with strength and confidence in the settlement.

In Prime Minister Hun Manit, Cambodia has a son who lacks experience for a former strong man who has no own authority yet, while in his father Hun Sen also has a man who seems ready to push this conflict more to burn his national credentials.

On the Thai side, the shaky coalition government, which focused on the Thaxin Party, is dealing with a stagnant economy and ringing the threat of American punitive definitions. Weakness in standing to Cambodia cannot appear.

Cambodia also deals with the struggling economy.

It was not fully recovered from the epidemic and tourism – its economy column – suffered from the lack of Chinese visitors staying far away for fear of being kidnapped and forcing them to work in fraud centers.

As with Thailand – now there is a threat to punish American definitions that affect the economy more.

But both countries have politicians in Hun Sen and Thaksin, who can definitely find, when they are ready, a way to get out of this.

We will also have to see whether other members of ASEAN are burdened with this conflict and try to persuade both countries to cancel the escalation.

This was originally the basic purpose of Asian – to avoid conflict between its members – and it will be a priority for some ASEAN countries at the present time to help these two countries resolve the conflict.

What remains a mystery at this stage is the reason that Hun Sen decided to burn this friendship and establish this conflict.

Maybe Thailand’s decision to pressure the fraud centers this year, or the Axin’s ambition to legitimize the gambling, threatening the lucrative casino industry in Cambodia.

Or perhaps it was simpler: a macaville step by a political survivor in Asia, to give up an ally in Thaxin, who lost a lot of his influence in Thailand, while at the same time burning his national credentials in the eyes of his people.