\n<\/p>\n
Welcome to Foreign Policy<\/em>\u2019s Southeast Asia Brief.<\/p>\n The highlights this week: Thailand and Cambodia skirmish on the border again<\/strong>, Indonesia and Australia sign a security pact<\/strong>, Rohingya drown off the coast<\/strong> of Malaysia, and Indonesia controversially names Suharto a national hero<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Have feedback? Hit reply to let me know your thoughts.<\/em><\/p>\n Thai-Cambodia Truce Breaks Down<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Thailand and Cambodia saw a fresh flare of violence last week, with the cease-fire that ended their border conflict in late July in tatters.<\/p>\n The first blow came Monday, Nov. 10, when four Thai soldiers were wounded<\/a> by a land mine in the border area.<\/p>\n Land mines were a key factor in the July violence. Thailand has repeatedly accused Cambodia of planting fresh mines in disputed areas. Cambodia has denied<\/a> these accusations, claiming the mines were old ones left over from past wars.<\/p>\n According to the foreign minister of Malaysia, the land mine<\/a> was new, though it has not been confirmed who laid it. (Malaysia has been leading the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, observer team that surveys cease-fire implementation.)<\/p>\n The result was that Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul suspended<\/a> the peace deal struck at the ASEAN summit.<\/p>\n Wednesday saw an exchange<\/a> of fire along the border that left at least one Cambodian villager<\/a> dead. Both sides accused the other of opening fire first. Cambodia further accused<\/a> Thailand of deliberately firing on civilians, which Thailand denied.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Anutin struck an uncompromising tone<\/a>, and added that he was not worried about tariffs from the United States in response to his tearing up the peace deal.<\/p>\n Thankfully, no new clashes have occurred since Wednesday. And on Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters he was optimistic things would be fine after speaking to the leaders of both countries.<\/p>\n Once again, Trump seems to be leaning on trade and tariffs to coerce a peace. The Thai foreign ministry confirmed Saturday that the U.S. had suspended<\/a> negotiations on a reciprocal tariff agreement pending Thailand\u2019s return to the peace agreement.<\/p>\n Anutin seems to be banking on his ability to separate the two issues. On Sunday, he told<\/a> Thai media that the prime minister of Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim, had informed him that Trump had promised not to link the tariff issue to peace.<\/p>\n Detractors of Anutin have accused him of adopting a hard line on Cambodia for reasons of political expediency. The prime minister\u2019s political position is extremely precarious<\/a>. His right-wing populist party leads a minority government reliant on a confidence and supply agreement with Thailand\u2019s largest progressive party, to whom he promised constitutional reform and a fresh election in four months.<\/p>\n Some think<\/a> the prime minister is deliberately stoking nationalist sentiment in order to bolster his image and election chances.<\/p>\n Such nationalist sentiments are also at play in Cambodia. Some analysts have suggested nationalism is being used<\/a> by the Hun dynasty to secure its grip on power, with leadership formally passed from Hun Sen to his son Hun Manet in 2023. And if Cambodia has planted new mines, that suggests recklessness. Though it came off worse in July, Cambodia seems keener on the peace deal and lavished praise<\/a> on Trump for his interventions.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Indonesia and Australia\u2019s new defense pact.<\/strong> Under the terms<\/a> of a new defense pact<\/a>, Indonesia and Australia will consult regularly on common security issues and \u201cadverse challenges to either party or to their common security interests and, if appropriate, consider measures which might be taken either individually or jointly.\u201d<\/p>\n At a joint press conference<\/a>, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese hailed the agreement as a \u201cwatershed moment.\u201d Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto was more measured, saying the treaty was \u201creaffirming\u201d the two countries\u2019 close relationship. The two countries already have a security agreement, the 2006 Lombok Treaty.<\/p>\n What does this new agreement add? The language on adverse challenges and joint action is purportedly based on the 1995 Suharto-Keating pact<\/a>, which Indonesia left in 1999, angered by Australia\u2019s leading role in the U.N. peacekeeping force sent to Timor-Leste. For Australia, that 1995 pact<\/a>, closely modeled off the ANZUS pact with the U.S. and New Zealand, was about getting as close as possible to a mutual defense pact with the firmly nonaligned Indonesia. The motivation then was worry about a rising China and the United States\u2019 long-term strategic commitment to the region. For Australia, these topics have only grown more pressing, so the aim and interpretation on the Australian side seems the same as in 1995. However, Indonesia for now seems to see the treaty<\/a> as just another part of its nonaligned policy, building good relations with Australia even as it buys jets from China.<\/p>\n Rohingya drown off Malaysian coast.<\/strong> Thai and Malaysian authorities have announced<\/a> that the death toll of Rohingya refugees whose boat overturned on Nov. 7 off the coast of Langkawi, Malaysia, now stands at 28. Dozens of others remain unaccounted<\/a> for.<\/p>\n Refugee numbers are unusually high this sailing season, with Malaysian officials saying 217 Rohingya and other Myanmar nationals have already reached Langkawi in 2025 after two years of minimal landings. More are on the way. Experts say a motivating factor are U.S. cuts<\/a> to food aid hitting refugee camps that house over 1 million refugees in Bangladesh.<\/p>\n Thailand\u2019s drinking laws flip-flop.<\/strong> Thailand hastily moved<\/a> Nov. 13 to modify a new law restricting drinking hours and fining<\/a> rule-breakers after a huge backlash from businesses claiming it would harm<\/a> Thailand\u2019s all-important tourism sector. The government has said it will delay plans to fine those drinking between the hours of 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. But businesses are still worried<\/a> that the widespread international reporting on the booze ban will hurt tourism\u2014and want the government to finalize new drinking-friendly regulations soon.<\/p>\n