Thailand on Wednesday (December 31, 2025) released 18 Cambodian ‍soldiers it had detained since July ​under the renewed ceasefire the ‌two countries agreed ​on the weekend to end a border conflict, Cambodian and Thai authorities said.

The Southeast Asian neighbours agreed on a ceasefire that took effect at noon (0500 GMT) on Saturday (December 27, 2025), ​halting 20 days of fighting ⁠that killed at least 101 people and displaced more than half a million ​on both ⁠sides, and included fighter-jet sorties, exchanges of rocket fire and artillery barrages.

The soldiers were due ‌to be returned on Tuesday (December 30, 2025), ‌but Thailand over alleged breaches of the ceasefire deal, ‍which Cambodia denied.

Cambodian Defence Ministry spokesperson Maly Socheata said the soldiers were ‍handed over at a border checkpoint at 10 a.m. (0300 GMT) on Wednesday after 155 days in Thai custody.

Thailand’s Foreign Ministry said the soldiers had been treated “in

The border clashes reignited ⁠early this month, following the breakdown in a ceasefire deal that ​U.S. President Donald Trump and Malaysian Prime ⁠Minister Anwar Ibrahim helped broker to halt a previous round of conflict in July.

Thailand will halt all actions it agreed to take under the terms of a U.S.-brokered ceasefire deal with Cambodia, the country’s Prime Minister said on Monday (November 10, 2025), just hours after a land mine explosion in the volatile border area injured two Thai soldiers.

Thailand and Cambodia signed a truce agreement at a summit in Malaysia last month, after territorial disputes between the two Southeast Asian neighbours led to a five-day deadly combat in late July that killed dozens.

Tensions have simmered, and there have been similar land mine explosions — both before and after the clashes, including one that injured three Thai soldiers patrolling the border zone in August.

Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said Monday’s incident shows that “the hostility towards our national security has not decreased as we thought it would,” adding that all actions to be carried out under the truce agreement will be halted until Thailand’s demands are met.

He did not elaborate on Thailand’s demands. There was no immediate response from the Cambodian government.

The terms of the agreement include Thailand releasing 18 Cambodian soldiers held prisoner, and for both sides to begin removing heavy weapons and land mines from the border area.

The Royal Thai Army said a sergeant had lost his right foot after stepping on a land mine while on patrol on Monday along the border in Sisaket province, while another soldier suffered a tightness in his chest from the impact of the blast. It said both soldiers were receiving treatment at a hospital.

Thai Defence Minister Natthaphon Narkphanit said the army is still investigating whether the mine was old or was newly laid. He added that Thailand will postpone the release of the captured Cambodian soldiers, initially scheduled for later this week.

The two sides said there has been some progress on arms removal, but Thailand accuses Cambodia of obstructing the mine clearance process. Cambodia says it’s committed to all terms in the agreement, including demining, and urged Thailand to release its soldiers as soon as possible.

Thailand has accused Cambodia of laying new mines in violation of the truce, which the Cambodian government denies.

The ceasefire was initially mediated by Malaysia, and U.S. President Donald Trump later threatened to withhold trade privileges unless both Cambodia and Thailand agreed on a truce, and the deal was signed during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in October.