BANGKOK/CHIANG MAI Thailand (Reuters) - On Dec. 27 last year, Thailand’s powerful army chief stood before a crowded news conference and stunned the beleaguered government of Yingluck Shinawatra by saying he would not rule out military intervention to resolve a deteriorating political crisis. General Prayuth Chan-Ocha said "the door was neither open nor closed" when he was asked whether a coup would happen. "Anything can happen."
It was a marked shift from the strong coup denials the armed forces had routinely made up until then. Prayuth was not just speaking off the cuff in front of reporters. A document drawn up by the army’s chief of staff and dated Dec. 27 – the same day the general faced the media - runs through various scenarios of how the crisis could unfold and how the military should respond.
