Hun Sen is a wily survivor of Cambodian politics and the wider tumult across Southeast Asia over the last half-a-century. Born to rice farmers in a province heavily bombed during the secret U.S. war in Cambodia and Laos, he became a soldier for the Khmer Rouge, whose murderous regime from 1975 to 1979 killed about a quarter of the population.

The talks between commanders on both sides were seen as a crucial test of whether the cease-fire deal reached on Monday would result in a lasting peace.

While Thailand and Cambodia have reached a temporary ceasefire in their border conflict, it is unlikely to hold as the conflict’s escalation is driven by Thai and Cambodian elites’ efforts to