WASHINGTON - US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said State Department officials were in Malaysia to assist peace efforts as Cambodia and Thailand were scheduled to begin talks there on July 28 in hopes for a ceasefire.

President Donald Trump and Mr Rubio were engaged with their counterparts for each country and were monitoring the situation very closely, Mr Rubio said in a statement released by the State Department late on July 27 in the US and early July 28 in Asia.

“We want this conflict to end as soon as possible,” he said. “State Department officials are on the ground in Malaysia to assist these peace efforts.”

The leaders of Thailand and Cambodia were scheduled to attend mediation talks over their

deadly border conflict

in Malaysia at 3pm on July 28, the Thai government said, as both sides accused each other of launching fresh artillery strikes across contested areas.

Tensions between Thailand and Cambodia have intensified since the late-May killing of a Cambodian soldier during a brief border skirmish. Border troops on both sides were reinforced amid a full-blown diplomatic crisis that brought Thailand's fragile coalition government to the brink of collapse.

Hostilities resumed on July 24 and, within just four days, escalated into the worst fighting between the South-east Asian neighbours in more than a decade.

The death toll has risen above 30, including 13 civilians in Thailand and eight in Cambodia, while authorities report that more than 200,000 people have been evacuated from border areas.

Mr Trump said on July 27 he believed both Thailand and Cambodia wanted to settle their differences after he told the leaders of both countries that he would not conclude trade deals with them unless they ended their fighting. REUTERS

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