Thailand’s PM Paetongtarn gets new cabinet with some familiar faces

Paetongtarn is leader of the Pheu Thai party, which took power after last year’s general election. It formed a government after members of the conservative Senate refused to endorse the prime minister nominated by the progressive Move Forward party, which won the most seats in the poll.

The new cabinet is substantially the same as Srettha’s, with five of the deputy prime ministers retaining their jobs. Also keeping their jobs are Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, and Finance Minister Pichai Chunhavajira, who are both also deputy prime ministers, as well as Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa.

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Thailand’s reformist Move Forward political party dissolved under lèse-majesté law

The new cabinet’s royal endorsement, published in the government gazette, followed weeks of speculation over its composition after the pro-military Palang Pracharath party was removed from the ruling coalition that Srettha had formed. The party and its leader, retired general Prawit Wongsuwan, were widely believed to be behind the ethics case brought before the Constitutional Court that cost Srettha his job before he completed a full year in office.