5 - A Moot Foreign Policy: Shortcomings and Oversights

Summary

Once a foreign minister himself, Prime Minister Thaksin should not be “foreign” to diplomacy. As foreign minister for three months in 1994–95, Thaksin was busy doing his own businesses rather than practising the norms of diplomacy. During this period, Thaksin was engrossed with expanding his telecom empire and accumulating his own wealth. Ukrist Pathmanand noted that his appointment as foreign minister offered a chance for Thaksin to establish a telecommunications network in some neighbouring countries. Shin's mobile phone and pay television projects in Cambodia began during this period. Through his appointment, Thaksin was able to connect with the Myanmar military government, and became close to Khin Nyunt who at that time was the military officer working on Myanmar telecommunications issues. Other studies confirm that Thaksin, in 1994, also ventured out further into the Philippines and India by extending his cable television services. In this context, his professional background as a “fabulously wealthy” telecommunications magnate was not a qualification for political power with a hand on foreign policy. Foreign policy simply became an annex to his populist domestic policy.

The tale of Thaksin's unrealized global ambitions points to certain flaws in Thai foreign policy from 2001 to 2006. Some of the consequences are serious and the impact of such a flawed foreign policy has a hangover effect in the post-Thaksin era. At present, the fugitive Thaksin has continued to exploit diplomacy to justify his political course, for example, in conspiring with Cambodia's Hun Sen to delegitimize the Abhisit government. This subject will be discussed in Chapter 7. As for this chapter, oversights and shortcomings of Thaksin's foreign policy will be critically examined. A criterion would be to answer the questions posed in the Introduction in this volume: Were Thaksin's key goals in foreign policy achieved? What will be the implications and long-term consequences? What are the lessons and insights for policy-makers and the Thai public?