Leaked phone call sparks turmoil in Thai government – DW – 06/19/2025
06/19/2025
June 19, 2025
The Thai government is on the brink of collapse after a phone call between Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra and a Cambodian politician was leaked. In the recording Shinawatra appeared to criticize the Thai military over a long-standing border dispute.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Int'l Business Times
12 hours ago
- Int'l Business Times
Thai PM To Meet Army Commander To Defuse Political Crisis
Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra will on Friday visit an army commander she called an "opponent" in a leaked phone call as she battles to defuse a crisis threatening to topple her government. The 38-year-old leader, in office for less than a year, was forced to make a public apology on Thursday as anger flared over the call with former Cambodian leader Hun Sen that appeared online. Her main coalition partner, the conservative Bhumjaithai party, pulled out on Wednesday saying she had insulted the country and the army, putting her government on the point of collapse. There was better news for Paetongtarn, daughter of controversial billionaire ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra, on Friday as another important coalition partner, the conservative Democrat Party, pledged to stay. "The Democrat Party will remain in the government to help resolve the challenges the country is currently facing," the party said in a statement. Another coalition party, Chartthaipattana, said late on Thursday that it would not withdraw, after urgent talks on the crisis with the Democrats and the United Thai Nation (UTN) party. With the departure of Bhumjaithai, the government led by Paetongtarn's Pheu Thai party now holds a razor-thin majority in parliament. Losing another major partner would likely see the government collapse, plunging the kindgom into fresh political instability as it grapples with a stuttering economy and US President Donald Trump's threatened trade tariffs. Paetongtarn will travel to Thailand's northeast on Friday to patch things up with Lieutenant General Boonsin Padklang, the commander of the forces in northeast Thailand, where the border clashes took place. She referred to Boonsin as her "opponent" in the leaked call with Hun Sen, in which the two leaders discussed the ongoing border dispute. Thailand has formally protested to Cambodia about the leak, calling it a breach of diplomatic protocol that had damaged trust between the two sides. Paetongtarn was criticised as being weak and deferential in the call with Hun Sen, a veteran politician known as a wily operator, but her comments about the army commander were potentially the most damaging to her. Thailand's armed forces have long played a powerful role in the kingdom's politics and politicians are usually careful not to antagonise them. When she made her public apology for the leaked call on Thursday, Paetongtarn did so standing in front of army and police chiefs, in a show of unity. There were small street protests on Thursday and calls from across the political spectrum for her to quit or announce an election, but her apology and backing from some of her coalition partners appear to have shored up her position for now. But with a tiny majority she remains vulnerable, not least because of the awkward nature of her coalition. Paetongtarn took office in August last year at the head of an uneasy alliance between Pheu Thai and a group of conservative, pro-military parties whose members have spent much of the past 20 years battling against her father. Thaksin, twice elected PM, was thrown out in a military coup in 2006, and the bitter tussle between the conservative, royalist establishment and the political movement he founded has dominated Thai politics throughout that time. Former Manchester City owner Thaksin, 75, still enjoys huge support from the rural base whose lives he transformed with populist policies in the early 2000s. But he is despised by Thailand's powerful elites, who saw his rule as corrupt, authoritarian and socially destabilising. There were small street protests on Thursday and calls from across the political spectrum for the leader to quit or announce an election AFP
DW
a day ago
- DW
Leaked phone call sparks turmoil in Thai government – DW – 06/19/2025
06/19/2025 June 19, 2025 The Thai government is on the brink of collapse after a phone call between Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra and a Cambodian politician was leaked. In the recording Shinawatra appeared to criticize the Thai military over a long-standing border dispute.
Int'l Business Times
a day ago
- Int'l Business Times
Thailand's 'Yellow Shirts' Return To Streets Demand PM Quit
Hundreds of anti-government protesters gathered outside Thailand's Government House on Thursday, demanding Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra resign over a leaked phone call with former Cambodian leader Hun Sen that triggered public outrage. The scandal rocked Paetongtarn's coalition after the Bhumjaithai party, a key partner, pulled out on Wednesday, accusing her of undermining the country and insulting the dignity of the military. The leaked call, in which Paetongtarn referred to the Thai army's northeastern commander as her opponent and addressed Hun Sen as "uncle" has drawn strong public backlash. The protest, held in scorching tropical heat, drew mostly elderly demonstrators wearing yellow shirts -- the colour strongly associated with Thailand's monarchy -- who accused the 38-year-old leader of "lacking diplomatic skills" and "endangering national interests". "I was very disappointed when I heard the (leaked) audio," Kanya Hanotee, 68, a temple worker told AFP. "She lacks negotiation skills. Who does she think she is? This country is not hers." Protesters waved Thai flags and placards labelling Paetongtarn a "traitor", and chanted "Get out!" and "Go to hell!" while dozens of riot police stood nearby. Many in the crowd were longtime supporters of the conservative, pro-royalist "Yellow Shirt" movement, which has fiercely opposed the Shinawatra political dynasty since the 2000s. Kaewta, 62, a housewife from Bangkok said she joined Yellow Shirt protests near Bangkok's Democracy Monument two decades ago. "I didn't support any political party. All I knew was that I hated Thaksin and his family," she told AFP. "Our politicians are all corrupt." The battle between the conservative pro-royal establishment and Thaksin's political movement backed by its own "Red Shirt" supporters has dominated Thai politics for more than 20 years. Yellow Shirts, backed by Royalists and business elites, led 2008 protests that shut Bangkok's airports, stranded tourists, and helped topple a Thaksin-linked government. In 2010, pro-Thaksin "Red Shirt" protesters rallied in Bangkok in opposition to the military-backed government, ending in a bloody crackdown that left more than 90 people dead. "The power has been passed from her father to her aunt, and now to her," said Mek Sumet, 59, an electrical equipment seller who took part in the 2008 Don Mueang airport occupation. "She doesn't think of the country but only of herself," he told AFP. The kingdom has had a dozen coups since the end of absolute monarchy in 1932, and the current crisis has inevitably triggered rumours that another may be in the offing. Despite Thailand's long history of coups, some protestors openly welcomed the idea of another military intervention. "I want the military to take control," Kanya told AFP. "We are thinking long-term. It will be positive for the country." Anti-government protesters demand Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra resign over a leaked phone call AFP The scandal rocked Paetongtarn's coalition after the Bhumjaithai party, a key partner, pulled out on Wednesday AFP Many in the crowd were longtime supporters of the conservative, pro-royalist "Yellow Shirt" movement AFP
