Thai Court Removes PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra Over Leaked Cambodia Call

Thailand’s Constitutional Court dismissed Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra on Friday for breaching ethics, marking another dramatic twist in the country’s decades-long power struggle. Paetongtarn, Thailand’s youngest prime minister, becomes the sixth leader from the Shinawatra family or its allies to be removed by military or judicial intervention in a political saga spanning more than 20 years.

The court ruled that Paetongtarn violated ethical standards during a leaked June phone call in which she appeared to defer to former Cambodian leader Hun Sen at a time of escalating border tensions. Weeks later, clashes broke out between the two nations, lasting five days.

This ruling effectively ends the brief tenure of the 39-year-old leader, daughter of influential tycoon Thaksin Shinawatra, and sets the stage for a potentially prolonged political standoff. Parliament must now elect a new prime minister, a process expected to be contentious as Paetongtarn’s Pheu Thai party struggles to maintain its fragile coalition with a razor-thin majority.

Paetongtarn apologized for the call, saying her intention was to prevent war. However, the verdict underscores the ongoing tug-of-war between elected Shinawatra-backed governments and a conservative-royalist establishment deeply entrenched in Thai politics.

Until a new leader is chosen, Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai and the current cabinet will act as a caretaker government. Among the five candidates eligible for the top post is 77-year-old Chaikasem Nitisiri from Pheu Thai, a former attorney general with limited political experience. Other names in the mix include former premier Prayuth Chan-ocha, who staged a 2014 coup against a Pheu Thai administration, and Anutin Charnvirakul, who recently withdrew his party from Paetongtarn’s coalition.

The leadership crisis comes amid rising public frustration over sluggish reforms and weak economic growth, forecast at just 2.3% this year. Analysts warn that forming a new government could take time and result in a shaky coalition vulnerable to frequent challenges from an energized opposition pushing for early elections.

"Appointing a new prime minister will be difficult and could take considerable time," said Stithorn Thananithichot, a political scientist at Chulalongkorn University. "Pheu Thai will be at a disadvantage."