Land of Smiles in Crisis: Another Shinawatra Falls
Paetongtarn Shinawatra, only months into her premiership, has been removed by Thailand’s top court over a leaked call — reigniting questions about the judiciary’s role in the kingdom
Ex-Thai PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra says she accepts the court's verdict after being removed from office over a leaked phone call with Cambodia's former leader. The Thai Constitutional Court today ruled that her "actions did not preserve the nation’s pride and considered personal interest over the country’s, which seriously violated or failed to follow the ethical standards.” In her first comments after the ruling, Paetongtarn acknowledged the ruling, but said that it had caused another "abrupt change" in Thailand, where she becomes the fifth leader since 2008 to be dismissed by this court. “But as a Thai person, I insist on my sincerity ... to work for the Thai people," Shinawatra says in a brief press conference. In the leaked clip, the ousted PM was heard calling Cambodia's Hun Sen "uncle" and criticising the Thai army. Now, the country's deputy PM will replace Shinawatra before a new vote is held for prime minister. Paetongtarn is now the fifth leader since 2008 to be dismissed by this court, plunging Thailand into uncertainty yet again. “In few other countries is political life so rigorously policed by a branch of the judiciary,” wrote the BBC’s Southeast Asia correspondent Jonathan Head. Paetongtarn was Thailand’s youngest ever leader - being only 37 when she took up the post - and also its second female prime minister after her aunt Yingluck Shinawatra who ruled from 2011 to 2014. The daughter of billionaire and former Thai PM Thaksin Shinawatra, she attended elite schools in Thailand and went to university in Surrey in the UK before working for the family’s Rende hotel group - BBC
The decision delivers a major, if not fatal, blow to the Shinawatra clan’s dramatic political resurgence and dynastic ambitions – though some suggest he could put forward his other, more reclusive daughter, Pintongta, at future elections. It marks the fourth time in nearly two decades that a Shinawatra family member has been knocked from power – either by a military coup or court ruling. The decision also casts immediate doubt on the status and durability of the reconciliation deal Thaksin is widely believed to have struck with the palace – one that allowed for the coup-ousted, criminally convicted ex-leader to return home from 15 years of self-exile under a royal pardon in exchange for his overt obeisance to the crown… It was well-known that Thaksin and party stalwarts felt the political novice Paetongtarn, who was pregnant on the 2023 campaign trail and never held a political office, wasn’t ready to lead the nation, which today’s ruling on her mishandled phone call with Hun Sen has now made fatally clear - Asia Times
Thai business leaders warn that the prime minister's dismissal creates political instability, which undermines the confidence of both domestic and foreign investors. The leadership transition threatens to disrupt long-term economic policy, potentially halting the 2025 fiscal year budget disbursement and delaying key investment projects. The political vacuum could worsen an existing economic crisis by causing a slowdown in investment and tourism, and hindering the government's ability to manage other pressing issues like trade negotiations - The Nation
Thailand is planning to give away free domestic flights for 200,000 international visitors over the next three months. The campaign, dubbed ‘Buy International, Free Thailand Domestic Flights,’ would allow eligible foreign tourists to claim a free round-trip flight within the country when booking international flights directly through airlines or travel agencies. Backed by the country’s tourism ministry, the scheme is set to run from September to November, if it receives cabinet approval. The government would subsidise up to THB 1,750 (€40) for a one-way ticket or THB 3,500 (€80) for a round-trip. Each ticket would also come with 20kg of checked baggage -Euronews
The decision casts immediate doubt on the status and durability of the reconciliation deal Thaksin is widely believed to have struck with the palace – one that allowed for the coup-ousted, criminally convicted ex-leader to return home from 15 years of self-exile under a royal pardon in exchange for his overt obeisance to the crown - Shawn Crispin
European leaders are weighing the creation of a 40 kilometer buffer zone between the Russian and Ukrainian frontlines as part of a peace deal, a last-ditch idea Moscow has embraced that would likely stretch the continent’s modest number of peacekeeping troops. The proposal, according to five European diplomats, is among several that military and civilian officials are considering for either a postwar or ceasefire scenario in Ukraine. Officials disagree how deep the actual zone could be and it’s unclear Kyiv would accept the plan as it would likely come with territorial concessions. The U.S. does not appear to be involved in the buffer zone discussions. But the fact that officials are toying with blocking off a strip of land inside Ukraine to force fragile peace is indicative of NATO allies’ desperation for a resolution to a war nearing its fourth year. Russian President Vladimir Putin has shown no desire to stop fighting. Moscow on Thursday launched a rare attack on the center of Kyiv, killing at least 19 people and damaging European Union offices. “They’re grasping for straws,” Jim Townsend, a former Pentagon official who oversaw Europe and NATO policy under the Obama administration said. “The Russians are not afraid of the Europeans. And if they think that a couple of British and French observers are going to deter them from marching into Ukraine, then they’re wrong.” A partition is fraught with historical significance. European diplomats have stayed away from likening it to the heavily guarded divide between North and South Korea, which are technically still fighting. They compare it more to the division of Germany during the Cold War. Putin and his deputies have said they are working to create buffer zones along Russia’s borders with Ukraine, which would put more distance between Moscow and Ukrainian artillery and drones. But no details have emerged to suggest what those proposals would entail. The number of servicemembers needed to patrol the border also remains a concern. Officials are discussing from 4,000 to around 60,000 troops. But countries have yet to make any commitments and President Donald Trump has backed away from a potential U.S. troop presence - Politico
Europe has begun buying American weapons for Ukraine in earnest, only weeks after President Trump struck a deal with NATO allies to do so. The latest sale, announced by the State Department on Thursday, will send 3,500 extended-range cruise missiles and GPS navigation kits to Ukraine once Congress formally approves it, as expected. They cost $825 million, paid for by Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway, with some unspecified financial assistance from the Pentagon. The missiles can be fired from fighter jets, and have a similar range to the Storm Shadow and Scalp missiles that Ukraine has used to strike Crimea and into Russia. The sale marks one of the first purchases by European countries on behalf of Ukraine since Mr. Trump and other NATO leaders reached the deal earlier this summer. “It’s not a game changer for Ukraine Air Force, but it might signal that there’s a productive conversation between Europeans and the Trump administration, in terms of future supply of modern equipment to Ukraine,” said Rafael Loss, a defense and security expert at the European Council on Foreign Relations - NYT
Ahead of an EU foreign ministerial meeting, the Danish presidency of the EU Council has prepared a four-page document with several questions to stimulate the nascent debate and send political signals on where to go next. The paper, seen by Euronews, name-checks Russia's oil, gas, financial and cryptocurrency sectors as potential targets, together with the "shadow fleet"that Russia employs to bypass the G7 price cap and the use of tariffs to stifle bilateral trade. Its most notable suggestion, though, is the activation of the "Anti-Circumvention Tool" that the bloc introduced two years ago to punish countries that help Russia get hold of the critical goods and materials forbidden by the West. “Are we ready to apply the tool?" the paper asks readers. Until now it’s never been used. Established in the summer of 2023, the instrument is designed to combat cases of evasion considered widespread, systematic and long-lasting, taking place across a variety of companies and sectors inside a country. If endorsed, the tool can prohibit the sale, supply and transfer of goods and technology that can facilitate Russia's war of aggression. This means the economic impact of the ban falls on the entire nation, rather than on a single wayward company. In other words, secondary sanctions.
At least 51 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks across Gaza since dawn, as the Israeli military says it is operating “with great force” in its offensive to seize control of Gaza City. Five more Palestinians have died of starvation in Gaza, the Health Ministry says, bringing the total number of deaths from malnutrition since the war began to 322, including 121 children - Al Jazeera
Low-cost imports to the US lose their duty-free status Friday as the government ends a loophole that has underpinned billions of dollars in global commerce. The end of the “de minimis” exemption, which applies to packages valued under $800, has sparked concern and confusion among international exporters and mail carriers. Mexico on Thursday joined at least 30 countries that have suspended postal shipments to the US, in what Bloomberg’s Odd Lots described as a collective embargo on the country. De minimis began as a modest tax provision, but has widened to become a fixture of e-commerce — and a trade policy lever. Fixing it makes sense, a Brookings expert wrote, but “scrapping a nearly century-old policy in less than a month does not - Semafor
Raging Vanity Fair employees have vowed to quit their jobs and work at a supermarket if First Lady Melania Trump is granted a spot on its cover. ‘I will walk out the motherf***ing door, and half my staff will follow me,' a mid–level editor told the Daily Mail on Monday, hours after Semafor reported the magazine's new global editorial director Mark Guiducci was trying to woo Melania to star on his cover. 'We are not going to normalize this despot and his wife; we're just not going to do it. We're going to stand for what's right,' the staffer continued. 'If I have to work bagging groceries at Trader Joe's, I'll do it. If [Guiducci] puts Melania on the cover, half of the editorial staff will walk out, I guarantee it.' Melania was infamously excluded from the pages of fashion bible Vogue during her husband's first presidency and has yet to grace the magazine during his second - Daily Mail
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