Cambodians living in Korea held a protest criticizing the government of the Republic of Korea, saying the T-50TH supersonic advanced trainer that Korea exported to Thailand was used to bomb Cambodia.
Cambodians in Korea held a rally on the 28th in front of the War Memorial of Korea in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, and submitted a related petition to the Ministry of National Defense. They argued that in the process of Thailand invading Cambodian territory on the 24th, Thailand used the T-50TH developed by Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) for attacks and killed civilians.
Participants in the rally said the Korean government and the National Assembly should condemn Thailand for misusing defense export items intended for training as offensive weapons. They said, "Weapons sold by Korea are being used to invade Cambodia," and "Cambodia wants peace."
Thailand and Cambodia have seen fighting rekindle recently over a border sovereignty dispute that has lasted more than 100 years, with at least 101 people killed and more than 500,000 displaced this month alone.
In particular, on the 24th, Christmas Eve, the Royal Thai Air Force was reported to have dropped four bombs on an ammunition storage facility in Battambang Province, Cambodia, using the T-50TH. Foreign media, citing senior Thai officials, reported that the model was switched from "for training" to "for actual combat" and deployed.
The two countries agreed to a ceasefire on the 27th, the 20th day of the fighting, and aligned on freezing troop deployments and halting provocations. However, the Thai military left a warning that it would respond immediately if Cambodia violated the terms, leaving tensions high.