Could Thailand and Cambodia really go to war?

Thai leader has warned that recent hostilities over border dispute could lead to all-out conflict

Photo composite illustration of Preah Vihear temple, Cambodian military and regional maps
Thailand and Cambodia have 'traded heavy artillery and rocket fire', killing at least 16 people and forcing thousands from their homes
(Image credit: Illustration by Stephen Kelly / Getty Images)

Thailand's acting prime minister, Phumtham Wechayachai, has warned that clashes between his nation and Cambodia could "move towards war", said the BBC.

In the "bloodiest military confrontation" between the southeast Asian neighbours in more than a decade, the enemies have "traded heavy artillery and rocket fire" across their disputed frontier, said Al Jazeera, killing at least 16 people and displacing tens of thousands of civilians.

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  Chas Newkey-Burden has been part of The Week Digital team for more than a decade and a journalist for 25 years, starting out on the irreverent football weekly 90 Minutes, before moving to lifestyle magazines Loaded and Attitude. He was a columnist for The Big Issue and landed a world exclusive with David Beckham that became the weekly magazine’s bestselling issue. He now writes regularly for The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Independent, Metro, FourFourTwo and the i new site. He is also the author of a number of non-fiction books.