Chinese President Xi Jinping has offered to play a constructive role in helping Thailand and Cambodia resolve their long-running border dispute, saying it serves both sides’ long-term interests.
Xi Jinping made the appeal during meetings with leaders from Thailand and Cambodia. He called for dialogue between the two sides and promised that China would play a “constructive role”, according to state news agency Xinhua.
He delivered a similar message in a separate meeting with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, adding that China supported a negotiated solution.
The dispute over their competing territorial claims, largely centred on an ancient temple complex, goes back decades. Last year it escalated into the deadliest fighting in more than a decade, leaving more than 100 military personnel and civilians dead and hundreds more injured. A ceasefire reached in December has largely held, but both sides continue to accuse each other of breaches.
