But in conflicts shaped by history, law, and human cost, what ultimately holds is not language. It is follow-through.
Today, Thailand’s foreign minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow publicly referenced a call with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, expressing readiness to work toward a ceasefire and to engage at the upcoming ASEAN foreign ministers’ meeting.
Those signals are not insignificant. They place the situation firmly within international diplomatic channels.
But this situation is not starting from zero.
There is an existing international court ruling that clarified obligations around the Preah Vihear area more than a decade ago, followed by years of relative stability.
There have also been multiple ceasefire efforts, supported by external actors, that did not consolidate into something durable.
And now the scale has shifted again. Civilian displacement is no longer measured in local terms, but in the hundreds of thousands, which changes how the situation is read well beyond the border.
At that point, credibility is shaped less by expressions of intent and more by whether commitments become shared, defined, and capable of being observed by others.
This is not about assigning fault in advance.
It is about recognising that once a conflict reaches this stage, the standard quietly changes.
That is what many outside the immediate arena will be watching for next.
Midnight
