Thailand

BANGKOK, Aug. 25 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's new Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin pledged on Friday to enact measures aimed at boosting the number of Chinese tourists to the country.

The Pheu Thai Party in a statement quoted Srettha as saying during his visit to the tourist island of Phuket that the return of Chinese tourists remains below pre-pandemic levels and stressed the need to ease entry restrictions while enhancing overall confidence in Thailand as a travel destination.

BANGKOK, Aug 22 (NNN-TNA) – Former Thai Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, today was transported to prison, soon after his return to the country, after years of exile, as Thailand’s Supreme Court issued an eight-year detention order for him.

The court’s criminal division for holders of political positions, announced a statement saying, Thaksin is convicted of eight-year imprisonment, related to his three convictions passed on the 74-year-old in absentia.

BANGKOK, Aug 22 (Reuters) - Real estate mogul Srettha Thavisin won the backing of Thailand's parliament on Tuesday to become prime minister, paving the way to a new coalition government and an end to weeks of uncertainty and political stalemate.

Srettha, who was thrust into the spotlight just a few months ago by the populist Pheu Thai Party, secured the support of more than half of the legislature, on a day when the party's billionaire figurehead Thaksin Shinawatra made a historic homecoming after years of as a fugitive in self-imposed exile.

BANGKOK (AP) — Divisive ex-Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra returned to Thailand on Tuesday after years of self-imposed exile to face possible criminal penalties on the same day that a party affiliated with him plans to start forming a new government.

Thaksin has said his decision to return has nothing to do with an expected vote in Parliament later in the day on a candidate from the Pheu Thai party for prime minister. But many believe his arrival is connected to the party’s pursuit of power.

BANGKOK, Aug. 17 (Xinhua) -- Thailand is stepping up construction of the China-Thailand railway in an effort to further develop domestic infrastructure, improve competitiveness, and enhance regional connectivity, according to deputy government spokesperson Traisuree Taisaranakul on Thursday.

BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand’s Constitutional Court cleared the way Wednesday for Parliament to vote for a new prime minister more than three months after national elections by declining to rule on a complaint over the rejection of the winning party’s leader.

The court had been asked to decide whether Parliament had violated the constitution by refusing to allow the leader of the progressive Move Forward Party to be nominated for a second time as a prime ministerial candidate.

BANGKOK, Aug 8 (Reuters) - The second-eldest son of Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn visited a child-care centre for underprivileged families on Tuesday during a surprise visit to the kingdom, the first time he has been back in his homeland in 27 years.

The trip by Vacharaesorn Vivacharawongse, 42, comes at a fraught time for the Thai royal family, with the monarch's eldest daughter in a coma since December.

Vacharaesorn, who works at a law firm in New York, visited the Foundation for Slum Child Care, which is supported by the royal family, and greeted well-wishers.

BANGKOK, Aug 5 (NNN-TNA) – Eight people were killed and four others injured, after a freight train collided with a pickup truck that was crossing the railway tracks, in eastern Thailand yesterday, authorities said.

The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) reported that, the accident occurred at around 2:20 a.m. local time, when the cargo train struck the pickup truck carrying workers at the railway crossing in Chachoengsao province.

BANGKOK (AP) — Myanmar’s military-controlled government has extended the state of emergency it imposed when the army seized power from an elected government 2 1/2 years ago, state-run media said Monday, forcing a further delay in elections it promised when it took over.

BANGKOK (AP) — The bitter battle to name Thailand’s next prime minister took a major turn Wednesday as Parliament voted to deny Pita Limjaroenrat, whose progressive Move Forward Party won a surprise victory in May’s election, a second chance to be confirmed for the post.

Pita had assembled a coalition of parties holding a majority in the House of Representatives. But his nomination for prime minister was defeated in a joint vote of the House and Senate last week, with conservative military-appointed senators mostly refusing their support.