PHNOM PENH, Aug 1 (Reuters) – Cambodia will nominate U.S. President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, its deputy prime minister said on Friday, following his direct intervention in halting the Southeast Asian country’s recent border conflict with Thailand.
Asked via text message to confirm Cambodia’s plan to nominate Trump for the prize, Chanthol responded, “yes.”
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Speaking to reporters earlier in the capital, Phnom Penh, Chanthol thanked Trump for bringing peace and said he deserved to be nominated for the prize, the highest-profile international award given to an individual or organisation deemed to have done the most to “advance fellowship between nations”. Pakistan said in June that it would recommend Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize for his work in helping to resolve a conflict with India, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last month he had nominated Trump for the award.
It was a call by Trump last week that broke a deadlock in efforts to end the heaviest fighting between Thailand and Cambodia in over a decade, leading to a ceasefire negotiated in Malaysia on Monday, Reuters has reported.
Following the truce announcement, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said in a post on X that Trump made it happen.
“Give him the Nobel Peace Prize!,” she said.
At least 43 people have been killed in the intense clashes, which lasted five days and displaced more than 300,000 people on both sides of the border.
“We acknowledge his great efforts for peace,” said Chanthol, also Cambodia’s top trade negotiator, adding that his country was also grateful for a reduced tariff rate of 19%.
Washington had initially threatened a tariff of 49%, later reducing it to 36%, a level that would have decimated Cambodia’s vital garment and footwear sector, Chanthol told Reuters in an interview earlier on Friday.
Reporting by Martin Petty in Bangkok and Chantha Lach and Zaw Naing Oo in Phnom Penh; Writing by Devjyot Ghoshal
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