Senior commanders from the Thai and Cambodian militaries agreed to de-escalate one of the bloodiest border conflicts between their nations in decades on Tuesday, in meetings that were seen as a crucial test of whether a cease-fire deal reached the previous day would bring a lasting end to the fighting.
The military talks came a day after the civilian leaders of Thailand and Cambodia, meeting in Malaysia, agreed to a cease-fire that was brokered on Monday by President Trump and Malaysia’s prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim. The deal seemed to end, at least for now, days of fighting that killed at least 38 people and displaced hundreds of thousands, although Thailand’s army on Tuesday accused Cambodia of continued attacks.
The military talks were being closely watched because both armies, particularly Thailand’s, are influential political players and were not represented at the discussions in Malaysia.
Both Thailand and Cambodia said their commanders had agreed to immediately stop fighting; to refrain from sending more troops to the border area; to strengthen communication on both sides; and to form a working group to ensure that the cease-fire is fully implemented.
“We agreed not to send more troops. That is the key development,” said Lim Menghour, the director general of Cambodia’s National Assembly, the lower house of the country’s Parliament.
Regional commanders from both sides held talks in three separate meetings. One meeting, between commanders of Thailand’s Second Army Region and Cambodia’s Fourth Military Region, which were involved in the fiercest fighting, was briefly postponed, but officials later confirmed that it had taken place.
Mr. Lim Menghour said there was a good atmosphere at those talks, which were held in the Cambodian border town of Os Mach. “I think if Thailand fully implements the agreed terms in the meeting and resolves the conflict peacefully, the situation will be back to normal pretty soon,” he added.
The next talks on the border dispute are set for Monday, when defense ministers from both countries will meet. Malaysia will be an observer at those discussions.
The fighting began on Thursday and continued for roughly five days, as Thailand and Cambodia pounded each other with attacks along the disputed border, including airstrikes.
On Tuesday morning, in a Cambodian border region where residents had been hearing blasts for days, there was a lull. Cambodian officials said there had been no attacks since the cease-fire took effect at midnight.
But Maj. Gen. Winthai Suvaree, a spokesman for Thailand’s army, accused Cambodia of violating the cease-fire deal by firing in several areas near the disputed border early on Tuesday. Ms. Maly Socheata rejected those accusations.
“I would like to reassure everyone that Cambodia’s troops are now firmly implementing orders and the cease-fire agreement since midnight,” she said.
Thailand’s acting prime minister, Phumtham Wechayachai, played down the reports of continued fighting, blaming “undisciplined soldiers” on the Cambodian side.
“We responded without going overboard,” he told reporters. “When they fired small arms, we fired small arms back. We did not escalate. At the moment, it is considered calm.”
Mr. Phumtham also made it clear that the army was central to Thailand’s decision-making about the cease-fire. He said his civilian government took the army’s advice “on how we want to negotiate.”
“At the moment, we want the military to take part in talks and make decisions,” he said.
Sun Narin contributed reporting from Siem Reap, Cambodia, and Kittiphum Sringammuang from Bangkok.