First came a push from the Malaysian premier, then China reached out, but it was only after President Donald Trump called Thailand's leader last week that Bangkok agreed to talks with Cambodia to end an escalating military conflict.

Thailand and Cambodia reaffirmed their shaky ceasefire on Wednesday after China helped mediate a peace process to end days of border fighting. The ceasefire reached in Malaysia was supposed to take effect at midnight on Monday,

Long-simmering tensions between Thailand and Cambodia escalated to deadly violence on July 24, setting off five days of military clashes at multiple spots along the roughly 800-kilometer (500 mile) border.