News
Government green light for power purchase from Laos
The Thai government approved a draft memorandum of understanding (MoU) on 21 December to purchase electricity from the Nam Thuen 1 hydropower project in Laos. The draft MoU was endorsed by the National Energy Policy Committee chaired by Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha, which will see Thailand ...
Thai authorities detain Lao women who illegally entered the country as sex workers
Thai authorities have detained 43 Lao women, some of whom appear underage, for illegally entering the country to work in the sex trade just two days after the Lao parliament passed an anti-human trafficking law to ensure protection for victims and punishments for perpetrators. Passed on ...
Laos issues first US$ notes in Thailand
Laos’ Finance Ministry has issued its first US dollar-denominated floating-rate notes in Thailand, worth $182 million (about Bt6.5 billion).The dual-tranche issuance was rated “BBB+” by Tris Rating on December 9. The maturities are 10 and 12 years and the coupons are six-month Libor (London Interbank ...
Drawdown of troops at Preah Vihear
Cambodia is quietly reducing troop numbers on the contentious shared border with Thailand in Preah Vihear province. Citing the current good relations with Cambodia’s western neighbour, Ministry of Defence spokesman Chhum Socheath on 17 December said members of three units had been ordered to leave the border ...
Thailand, US resume high-level talks
Thailand and the United States resumed a high-level dialogue for the first time in three years on 16 December as both sides sought to mend a relationship strained by the Thai military coup last year. At a press conference in Bangkok after the 5th Thai-US strategic dialogue, ...
DNA test proves Benjina corpse is Thai
A DNA test has confirmed that a corpse unearthed on Indonesia’s Benjina Island is that of a Thai crew member of a fishing trawler, Justice Minister Paiboon Koomchaya said on 16 December. Indonesia earlier believed the body was a Cambodian national, based on the seaman’s book found ...
Local printer pulls another NYT article
The local printer of the International New York Times Thailand edition left a blank space on an inside page on 15 December, the fourth time content has been removed from the internationally respected newspaper in three months. The 618-word article, written by its Bangkok correspondent Thomas Fuller, talked ...
Chakthip transfers new trafficking probe chief
A deputy Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) chief in charge of handling human trafficking has been transferred to an inactive post after he complained about a heavy workload in handling human trafficking cases. National police chief Chakthip Chaijinda said on 15 December he had ordered the transfer of ...
Border scrap off talks agenda
The territorial conflict between Thailand and Cambodia will not be discussed during Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen’s visit to Thailand this week, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha says. Gen Prayut said while both countries will discuss a wide range of topics such as energy and trade and ...
Court rejects plea to free detained student activist
The Criminal Court on 15 December dismissed a petition filed by the head of a student activist group seeking to have the arrest of Thammasat University student Thanet Anantawong ruled unlawful. Keep reading ...
