THURSDAY, March 28, 2024
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Thai King cannot rule from Germany, says Berlin

Thai King cannot rule from Germany, says Berlin

HM King Maha Vajiralongkorn should not conduct affairs of state when he is living in Germany, the country's foreign minister was reported as saying by Reuters.

Responding to a question by a Greens lawmaker in the Bundestag, the German parliament, on Wednesday, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas reportedly said: “We have made it clear that politics concerning Thailand should not be conducted from German soil. ... If there are guests in our country that conduct their state business from our soil, we would always want to act to counteract that,” according to Reuters.

 Greens MP  Frithjof Schmidt, reportedly also asked Maas if Germany would discuss with the European Union (EU) freezing free trade talks with Thailand if "the junta continues to block the path to democracy".
Maas said that it would be better to discuss with Thailand first before exercising the option of halting negotiations, Reuters reported.
The EU froze contacts with Thailand after a 2014 coup but resumed trade talks after a general election last year.
Pro-democracy protesters are planning a major rally on October 14 at Democracy Monument in Bangkok.

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