Former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra (pic) shared his insights during an exclusive interview at the 55 Years Nation Exclusive Talk: Breaking Through Thailand’s Crisis Chapter 1 event.
The discussion focused on various pressing issues, including the leaked audio clip of a June 15 call between Cambodian Senate President Hun Sen and Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra.
The incident could significantly affect the standing of Paetongtarn, who is Thaksin’s daughter.
Thaksin referred to the secret recording of their private phone conversation and its subsequent public release by Hun Sen on his Facebook page on June 18.
“The situation started when my daughter mentioned that she planned to speak with Hun Sen through Khliang Huot (a close aide of Hun Sen who also acted as an interpreter) and arrange a call with him,” Thaksin shared.
“She invited Defence Minister Phumtham (Wechayachai), Foreign Minister Maris (Sangiampongsa) and Secretary to the Prime Minister, Dr Prommin Lertsuridej, to join her, as she wasn’t going alone. They waited for three hours, but Hun Sen said he was asleep and even sent a photo to prove it.
“I told my daughter to return, and everyone disbanded. But later, Hun Sen personally called my daughter’s phone. That was really painful. Originally, we had intended to resolve matters through dialogue,” he said.
Reflecting on the deteriorating relationship, Thaksin said: “When things end, they end. I questioned what went wrong.
“I reviewed everything from Thursday night to Friday morning, and Nation TV reported on troop movements along the border.
“I was furious. I called Huot and asked, ‘Are we about to go to war?’ I demanded they pull back the troops and settle things through the JBC (Joint Boundary Committee) mechanism.
“Even though Cambodian troops were withdrawn on Sunday, by Monday, we closed the border, which angered him (Hun Sen),” he said.
“When Paetongtarn later posted that his actions were unprofessional, Hun Sen became angry. But I want to emphasise that we have not yet reached the point of declaring war, as we can still resolve this through the JBC talks.
“Today, I don’t know what to say any more. I only sent one message to Hun Sen: ‘What you are doing today is damaging both sides. We were once very close, but I never expected it to turn out like this.’” — The Nation/ANN
