Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar pointed out that, due to requests from Cambodia and Thailand to postpone the meeting, the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Special Meeting originally scheduled for tomorrow will be delayed, pending further assessment of the border tensions between the two countries.
“They requested to slightly postpone the meeting, so we decided to delay it to ensure everything is ready.
“Nevertheless, we continue to call for both sides to ceasefire. The situation is very critical, and I maintain daily video contact with them.”
He made these remarks on the situation at the two countries’ borders after attending the launch of the book 'Those Who Move Mountains: Reflections of Social Activist Mohamad Idris' organized by IAIS (Malaysian Institute of Advanced Islamic Studies) today.
Regarding media reports that Thailand has blocked the Gulf of Thailand to prevent military supplies from reaching Cambodia, Anwar said the two sides are currently in negotiations to ease the situation.
Earlier, Malaysia had urged Thailand and Cambodia to halt all forms of hostile actions and avoid taking any further military steps, including deploying armed forces to the frontline after 10 p.m. on December 13th (11 p.m. Malaysian time).
Anwar said that in view of the ongoing border tensions between the two countries, after discussions with US President Trump, he separately communicated this appeal via phone to Thai Prime Minister Anutin and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet.
The Thai and Cambodian Prime Ministers signed a peace agreement during the 47th ASEAN Summit on October 26, witnessed by Anwar and Trump.
According to the peace agreement, Thailand and Cambodia have agreed to end hostilities and establish good neighborly relations.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs later issued a statement indicating that the abovementioned special meeting will be postponed to next Monday (the 22nd), and will be hosted by Malaysian Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan in his capacity as the current ASEAN rotating chair.