Trump’s Thailand-Cambodia peace prize play puts Asean in a precarious position

The camouflage-clad soldiers who patrol the rice fields around Wichien’s village are a daily reminder that peace along Thailand’s border with Cambodia is perilous, despite the recent truce.

For the Thai farmer, the prospect of a lasting settlement is welcome. But US President Donald Trump’s involvement is not.

“Trump isn’t here seeking peace, he’s only after recognition … a Nobel Prize. It’s about serving his own ambitions, not helping us,” said Wichien, who asked to be identified by only one name during such anxious times.

“We’re fully capable of resolving our issues with Cambodia on our own.”

Trump’s White House sees things differently. It claims credit for ending July’s bloody five-day border conflict that left at least 48 people dead on both sides.

Now, he wants to crown his intervention with a symbolic peace signing ceremony in Malaysia of a document diplomats have already dubbed the “Kuala Lumpur Accord”.