Cambodia’s Prime Minister, Hun Manet, has nominated U.S. President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, praising his "extraordinary statesmanship" in resolving a border dispute between Cambodia and Thailand.
Mr Manet announced the nomination via a Facebook post on Thursday, which included a letter he claimed was sent to the Norwegian Nobel Committee. In the letter, he lauded Mr Trump’s intervention as an example of his "exceptional achievements in de-escalating tensions in some of the world’s most volatile regions", News.Az reports citing The Independent.
"This timely intervention, which averted a potentially devastating conflict, was vital in preventing a great loss of lives and paved the way towards the restoration of peace," the Cambodian leader wrote.
The resolution stemmed from a July 26 call by Mr Trump to the leaders of both nations, which broke a stalemate in efforts to end some of the most intense fighting between the neighbours in recent history, as reported by Reuters. This led to a ceasefire agreement negotiated in Malaysia on July 28. The two countries further agreed on Thursday to prevent any reignition of hostilities and to permit observers from Southeast Asia.
The five-day conflict had resulted in 43 fatalities and displaced over 300,000 people, escalating from small arms fire to heavy artillery and rocket attacks, culminating in Thailand’s deployment of an F-16 fighter jet for air strikes.
