Border tensions between Cambodia and Thailand spiraled from temple protests in February into open conflict by July, leaving dozens dead and displacing more than 300,000 people before international pressure forced a ceasefire. The truce, while significant, is only a temporary pause as the core of the crisis, a centuries-old dispute over prized Hindu temple ruins, remains unresolved. Looming over the situation is the shadow of global rivalry, with Cambodia aligned with China and Thailand with the United States.
Origins of the Dispute
In the late 19th century, the Kingdom of Siam (modern-day Thailand) ceded large areas of territory to France in exchange for recognition of its sovereignty. France consolidated these gains into French Indochina, which included Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam. In 1907, France and Siam signed a treaty to establish the border between Siam and Cambodia, but left large stretches in the mountainous regions undefined, including the area that lies at the
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