The Diplomat February 20, 2026
The war helped secure an election victory for Anutin and Thai conservatives. And that was almost certainly by design. In June 2025, Hun Sen, Cambodia’s influential former prime minister, leaked the audio of a phone call that he’d held days earlier with the leader of Thailand. The two nations were then on the brink of conflict over their disputed border, and Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra wanted to calm the situation.