Kuala Lampur, Nov. 11 -- When Thailand and Cambodia exchanged artillery fire across their shared border in July 2025, few in the region expected the violence to end so swiftly. Within four days, a ceasefire was reached, displacements stopped, and both sides agreed to resume talks under the auspices of the General Borders Committee (GBC).

The venue was not Washington or Beijing-it was Kuala Lumpur. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, acting not as an interloper but as Asean's sitting Group Chair, provided the platform and quiet diplomacy that made the peace possible.

Yet, in the aftermath, some critics in Bangkok accused Malaysia of "interfering" in Thailand's domestic affairs. Retired Lieutenant General Rangsit, a perennial fringe figure in T...