This week, funding cuts weaken desperately needed peacekeeping work in South Sudan. Buddhist monks complete 108-day walk for peace across US. Thai bishop calls on newly elected government to promote lasting peace with Cambodia.
Funding Cuts Weaken Desperately Needed Peacekeeping Work in South Sudan
Funding cuts are weakening desperately needed peacekeeping work in South Sudan. On February 10, UN peacekeeping chief Jean-Pierre Lacroix said cost-cutting measures have already reduced protection patrols by up to 40 percent in some areas, and as much as 70 percent where bases have closed. Human rights monitoring missions have been cancelled, and tensions have grown in areas without UN personnel, he added.
This development comes as fighting is intensifying in Jonglei state, where violence between Government forces and opposition elements has displaced more than 280,000 people, according to government sources.
After the country experienced a civil war in 2013 which killed over 400,000 people, South Sudan’s fragile peace has been deteriorating since 2025, despite a peace agreement signed in 2018. Amnesty International on May 28, 2025 reported that violence had killed 180 people between March and mid-April 2025 amid deepening divisions between President Salva Kiir and First Vice President Riek Machar. On September 21 2025, at least 48 people were killed and over 152 injured in fighting between South Sudan’s army and opposition forces in Burebiey.
Buddhist Monks Complete 108-Day Walk for Peace Across US
On February 10, a group of Buddhist monks completed a 108-day ‘walk for peace’ across the United States. The walk’s leader, Venerable Bhikkhu Pannakara, said he hoped that when the walk ended “the people we met will continue practicing mindfulness and find peace.”
The walk’s completion comes at a time of intense political division in the US, and the world. Mallory McDuff for The Guardian observed that the monks’ journey was “a slow-moving meditation meant to embody peace, rather than argue for it.”
The monks’ journey hasn’t always been easy. They have braved freezing temperatures barefoot, and one monk had to have a leg amputation after a driver crashed into their group in Texas.
The monks began their journey on October 26, 2025 at the Huong Dao Vipassana Bhavana Center in Fort Worth.
Thai Bishop Calls on Newly Elected Government to Promote Lasting Peace with Cambodia
Following Thailand’s Febraury 8 elections, the Catholic bishop of Thailand’s southern Surat Thani province is calling on the winning Bhumjaithai (Thai Pride) party to promote lasting peace with Cambodia.
Monsingor Paul Trairong Multree, Bishop of Surat Thani, told Agenzia Fides, “Currently, the conflict is in a truce phase, which we hope will be respected by both sides, and we trust that the new government can transform it into a lasting and definitive peace agreement that restores good relations and normalcy to economic and trade exchanges.”
The bishop expressed his concerns over the spread of nationalism, in Thailand, adding, “also because there are groups in both countries that have tried to exploit this situation for their own benefit.”
On July 28, 2025, Thailand and Cambodia reached a ceasefire after days of escalation in conflict beginning on July 24. The escalation began a day after a landmine explosion injured five Thai soldiers, including one who lost his leg. However, the series of events that led to the escalation were disputed between the two countries, with both sides blaming the other. The ongoing conflict is over disputed land surrounding a temple in Cambodia.
Despite the July 28 ceasefire, tensions remain high between the two countries. The World Health Organization reported in December 2025 that there have been 18 civilian deaths in Cambodia, including an infant and an elderly person, with 79 injured. Meanwhile, in Thailand, a total of 16 civilian deaths have been reported, including one directly related to fighting, and six civilians have been injured.
Keywords: South Sudan, walk for peace, monks, buddhist, Thailand, Cambodia, peace, conflict, conflict resolution
Tara Abhasakun
Tara Abhasakun is Peace News Network (PNN)'s managing editor. She is journalist based in Christchurch, New Zealand, and formerly in Bangkok, Thailand. She has reported on a range of human rights issues involving youth protests in Thailand, as well as arts and culture. Tara's work has appeared in several outlets, including Al Jazeera and South China Morning Post.
