Thailand's foreign minister said Tuesday that former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, who fled the country last year to evade a prison sentence, is in Britain, after photos surfaced online apparently showing Yingluck in London.
FILE - In this In this Thursday, Jan. 22, 2015, file photo, Thailand's former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, arrives at parliament in Bangkok, Thailand. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit, File)
Yingluck, whose government was ousted in a 2014 coup, was sentenced in absentia to five years in prison on Sept. 27 for negligence in instituting a money-losing rice subsidy program. She fled Thailand before the verdict and has called the case against her politically motivated.
She has not been seen in public since fleeing, but it had been generally assumed that Yingluck was in Dubai or London. Her brother, ousted former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, maintains residences in both cities.
In this Aug. 1, 2017, file photo, Thailand's former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra arrives at the Supreme Court to make her final statements in a trial on a charge of criminal negligence in Bangkok, Thailand. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit, File)
Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai told reporters Tuesday that a visiting British government minister informed Thai officials that Yingluck has been in London since September.
The confirmation of Yingluck's whereabouts came after several photographs of her appeared in Thai and social media in the past few weeks, including one apparently taken with another woman outside Harrods department store in London.
In this July 21, 2017, file photo, Thailand's former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra greets supporters as she arrives at the Supreme Court to make her final statements in a trial on a charge of criminal negligence in Bangkok, Thailand. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit, File)
Don said the Thai government has not made a decision on whether to ask Britain to extradite Yingluck. "We have to do a 360-degree assessment of the situation first," he said.
Yingluck's conviction is the latest chapter in a decade-long struggle between Thailand's traditional ruling class — led by royalists and the military — and the powerful political machine founded by Thaksin, who was toppled in a 2006 coup. Thaksin has lived in Dubai since fleeing a corruption conviction that he says was politically motivated.
BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand and New Zealand on Wednesday vowed to boost economic cooperation with an aim to triple two-way trade by 2045, as the New Zealand leader visited Thailand for the first time in 11 years.
New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon arrived in Bangkok on Tuesday and met with his Thai counterpart Srettha Thavisin at the government house on Wednesday. They discussed trade, education, investment, visa arrangements, tourism, transnational crime and cybersecurity.
“We have agreed to elevate Thailand-New Zealand relations to a strategic partnership in 2026 or sooner, which will mark the 70th anniversary of our diplomatic relations. This will create the momentum for us to further expand and deepen cooperation in all dimensions,” Srettha said during a joint news conference after the meeting.
Luxon said that trade between the countries has tripled since a free trade agreement was signed 20 years ago.
"But today we have committed to look for further opportunities to expand our economic cooperation and for new opportunities. Today we announced an ambitious goal to triple our two-way trade by 2045,” he said.
Business delegations from both countries also held a meeting helmed by the two prime ministers at the government house, seeking to rapidly expand the bilateral economic relationship.
The two leaders said they looked forward to tariff-free entry for all Thai and New Zealand imports due to take effect Jan. 1. They also said they agreed to further facilitate visas between Thailand and New Zealand, and to resume direct flights that were shut after the pandemic.
Just before the news conference, the prime ministers presided over the signing of two agreements to increase cooperation in education and aviation supply, repair and maintenance.
The situation in neighboring Myanmar was also discussed. Srettha said Thailand is closely watching the tense situation on its northwestern border, where the key Myanmar town of Myawaddy recently fell to forces fighting the military, which seized power in 2021.
Thailand's Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, center, arrives before the welcome ceremony for New Zealand's Prime Minister at the government house in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, April 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
New Zealand's Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, right, is escorted by Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, before a welcoming ceremony at the Government House in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, April 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
A Thai soldier checks royal guards before a welcome ceremony for New Zealand's Prime Minister Christopher Luxon in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, April 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
New Zealand's Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, foreground, escorted by Thailand's Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, listens to national anthems during a welcoming ceremony at the Government House in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, April 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Thailand's Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, second left, and New Zealand's Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, third left, bow in front of Thailand and New Zealand national flags during a welcome ceremony at the government house in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, April 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
New Zealand's Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, left, reviews an honor guard during a welcome ceremony at the government house in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, April 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Thailand's Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, front left, and New Zealand's Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, front right, review an honor guard during a welcome ceremony at the government house in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, April 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
