Thailand and Cambodia sign new ceasefire agreement to end border fighting

BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand and Cambodia on Saturday signed a ceasefire agreement to end weeks of armed combat along their border over competing claims to territory. It took effect at noon local time.

In addition to ending fighting, the agreement calls for no further military movements by either side and no violations of either side’s airspace for military purposes.

Only Thailand employed airstrikes in the fighting, hitting sites in Cambodia as recently as Saturday morning, according to the Cambodian defense ministry.

The deal also calls for Thailand, after the ceasefire has held for 72 hours, to repatriate 18 Cambodian soldiers it has held as prisoners since earlier fighting in July. Their release has been a major demand of the Cambodian side.

The agreement was signed by the two countries’ defense ministers, Cambodia’s Tea Seiha and Thailand’s Nattaphon Narkphanit, at a checkpoint on their border after lower-level talks by military officials met for three days as part of the already-established General Border Committee.

The agreement declares that the two sides are committed to an earlier ceasefire that ended five days of fighting in July and follow-up agreements, and includes commitments to 16 de-escalation measures.

The original July ceasefire was brokered by Malaysia and pushed through by pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump, who threatened to withhold trade privileges unless Thailand and Cambodia agreed. It was formalized in more detail in October at a regional meeting in Malaysia that Trump attended.

Despite those deals, the two countries carried on a bitter propaganda war and minor cross-border violence continued, escalating in early December to widespread heavy fighting.

Thailand has lost 26 soldiers and one civilian as a direct result of the combat since Dec. 7, according to officials. Thailand has also reported 44 civilian deaths from collateral effects of the situation.

Cambodia hasn’t issued an official figure on military casualties, but says that 30 civilians have been killed and 90 injured. Hundreds of thousands of people have been evacuated from affected areas on both sides of the border.

Each side blamed the other for initiating the fighting and claimed to be acting in self-defense.

The agreement also calls on both sides to adhere to international agreements against deploying land mines, a major concern of Thailand. Thai soldiers along the border have been wounded in at least nine incidents this year by what they said were newly planted Cambodian mines. Cambodia says the mines were left over from decades of civil war that ended in the late 1990s.

Another clause says the two sides “agree to refrain from disseminating false information or fake news.”

The agreement also says previously established measures to demarcate the border will be resumed and the two sides also agree to cooperate on an effort to suppress transnational crimes.

That is primarily a reference to online scams perpetrated by organized crime that have bilked victims around the world of billions of dollars each year. Cambodia is a center for such criminal enterprises.

CORRECTS NAME OF THAI DEFENSE MINISTER - In this photo released by Agence Kampuchea Press (AKP), Cambodian Defense Minister Tea Seiha, left, stands with Thai Defense Minister Nattaphon Narkphanit, right, at the General Border Committee Meeting in Chanthaburi Province, Thailand Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AKP via AP)

In this photo released by Agence Kampuchea Press (AKP), Cambodian Defense Minister Tea Seiha, left, stands with Thai Defense Minister Natthaphon Narkphanit, right, at the General Border Committee Meeting in Chanthaburi Province, Thailand Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AKP via AP)

Illumination flares fired by Thai military forces shine in Poipet, Cambodia, as seen from Sa Kaeo, Thailand, on Friday, Dec. 26, 2025, following clashes between Thai and Cambodian soldiers. (AP Photo/Wason Wanichakorn)

The Thai military fires artillery towards Cambodia, Friday, Dec. 26, 2025, seen from Thailand's Sa Kaeo province. (AP Photo/Wason Wanichakorn)

In this photo released by Agence Kampuchea Press (AKP), Cambodian Defense Minister Tea Seiha, left, stands with Thai Defense Minister Natthaphon Narkphanit, right, at the General Border Committee Meeting in Chanthaburi Province, Thailand Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AKP via AP) g

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — England ended an 18-match winless streak in Australia and beat the home side by four wickets in the fourth Ashes test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Saturday.

England lost the first three tests to allow Australia to retain the Ashes in just 11 days of on-field action at Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide.

But England returned the favor by winning the MCG test Saturday inside two days, similar to Australia's opening win at Perth.

It was the first time the same series has had multiple two-day tests in 129 years.

The England winless streak had dated to the 2013-14 Ashes series, which Australia won 5-0. Since England convincingly won the 2010-11 Ashes 3-1, England had lost 16 matches and drawn the other two of their 18 tests Down Under over a period of nearly 15 years.

Needing 175 second-innings runs to win and 98 after the tea break, England reached its target at 178-6 to clinch the match and send thousands of its long-suffering but faithful “Barmy Army” fans into frenzied celebration.

"It’s obviously been a tough tour up until now,” England captain Ben Stokes said. “The way that we did it was fantastic. It showed bravery, we were courageous in the way we operated.”

England raced to 70-2 off the first 10 overs in its second innings, losing the wickets of Ben Duckett (34) and Brydon Carse (6). Scott Boland removed Zak Crawley (37) and Jacob Bethell (40), who both made valuable contributions.

Joe Root (15) and Stokes (2) fell cheaply before Jamie Smith and Harry Brook guided the visiting side to a morale-boosting win ahead of the fifth and final test beginning Jan. 4 in Sydney.

Earlier Saturday, England bowled out Australia out for 132 in its second innings after lunch on Day 2. On an MCG pitch offering substantial sideways movement for pace bowlers, England successfully chased down a target of 175 to win after 30 wickets had fallen in 4 1-2 sessions.

The dismissal of opener Travis Head (46) was quickly followed by the departures of Usman Khawaja (0) and Alex Carey (4) in the next two overs as Australia slumped from 82-3 to 88-6 in the morning session.

Stokes (3-24) claimed the important wicket of Cameron Green (19) after lunch, caught at second slip, and Brydon Carse sliced through the tail to finish with 4-34.

“If we got 50 or 60 more across both innings, we might have been there in the end,” Australia stand-in skipper Steve Smith said.

Australia held an overall lead of 46 Friday after scoring 152, running through England for 110 in a dramatic first day

Josh Tongue, named player of the match, claimed a career-best 5-45 to lead England’s bowling attack Friday before Michael Neser grabbed 4-45 for Australia.

Cricket Australia chief executive Todd Greenberg said Saturday “short tests are bad for business," and said CA would consider a closer role in pitch preparation in the future.

“Historically we have taken a hands-off approach in all of our wicket preparation and allowed the staff and the conditions and those characteristics to be presented,” Greenberg told SEN Radio. ”But it’s hard not to get more involved when you see the impact on the sport, particularly commercially."

The attendance at the MCG on Saturday was 92,045, the second-highest test crowd in Australia, only behind Friday's opening-day crowd of 94,199. Officials said 90,000 tickets had been sold for the non-existent third day.

AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket

England's Jamie Smith, center right, and batting partner Harry Brook shake hands after defeating Australia on Day 2 of their Ashes cricket test match in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

Fans celebrate England's win over Australia on Day 2 of their Ashes cricket test match in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

Fans celebrate England's win over Australia on Day 2 of their Ashes cricket test match in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

England's Jamie Smith, left, Ben Stokes, second left, Harry Brook andJoe Root, right, shake hands after defeating Australia on Day 2 of their Ashes cricket test match in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

England's Ben Stokes applauds the crowd after England defeated Australia on Day 2 of their Ashes cricket test match in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

Australia's Scott Boland, center, successfully appeals for a LBW decision on England's Zak Crawley, right, on Day 2 of their Ashes cricket test match in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

England's Joe Root bats against Australia on Day 2 of their Ashes cricket test match in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

England's Jamie Smith, left and Harry Brook touch bats near the end of their Ashes cricket test match against Australia in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

England's Brydon Carse, left, grabs the ball for a caught and bowled on Australia's Michael Neser, right, on Day 2 of their Ashes cricket test match in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

Australia's Steve Smith watches the ball while batting against England on Day 2 of their Ashes cricket test match in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

England's Ben Duckett bats against Australia on Day 2 of their Ashes cricket test match in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

England's Ben Stokes, right, celebrates with teammates after taking Australia's final wicket of their second innings on Day 2 of their Ashes cricket test match in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

England's Brydon Carse celebrates the wicket of Australia's Mitchell Starc on Day 2 of their Ashes cricket test match in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

Fans of the England cricket team, known as the Barmy Army, wave flags on Day 2 of the Ashes cricket test match between Australia and England in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

Australia's Jake Weatherald his bowled by England's Ben Stokes on Day 2 of their Ashes cricket test match in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

England's Josh Tongue, second left, celebrates with teammates after the wicket of Australia Usman Khawaja on Day 2 of their Ashes cricket test match in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

Australia's Travis Head walks off after he is bowled by England's Brydon Carse on Day 2 of their Ashes cricket test match in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)

England's Josh Tongue, right, celebrates with teammate Jacob Bethell after the wicket of Australia Usman Khawaja on Day 2 of their Ashes cricket test match in Melbourne, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Hamish Blair)