Thailand’s Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has announced that he is “returning power to the people”, moving to dissolve parliament and opening the door to elections earlier than previously planned.
Anutin submitted a request for the dissolution of parliament to the king, local media reported on Thursday.
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Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn later endorsed the decree to dissolve parliament, the country’s official Royal Gazette announced on Friday, making way for early elections, which by law must now be held within 45 to 60 days.
Government spokesman Siripong Angkasakulkiat told the Reuters news agency that the move followed a dispute with the opposition People’s Party, the largest bloc in the legislature.
“This happened because we can’t go forward in parliament,” Siripong said, describing a legislative impasse that has paralysed the government’s agenda.
The political rupture comes as Thailand engaged in four consecutive days of heavy fighting with Cambodia along their shared border. At least 20 people have been killed in both countries and nearly 200 wounded in clashes across more than a dozen locations involving artillery exchanges and air strikes.
Anutin insisted the dissolution would not disrupt security operations. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, he said military deployments along the border would continue uninterrupted.
He later repeated his stance on social media: “I am returning power to the people.”
Sluggish economy
Anutin, Thailand’s third prime minister since August 2023, has struggled to stabilise an economy hampered by high household debt, sluggish consumption and pressure from United States tariffs. Political uncertainty has added to the strain on Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy.
Anutin had initially said he planned to dissolve parliament by the end of January, with elections scheduled for March or early April.
His rise to power followed his Bhumjaithai Party’s withdrawal from the ruling coalition and a new agreement with the People’s Party, which demanded several concessions, including a referendum on constitutional reform, in exchange for supporting him.
Siripong said the coalition fractured when those demands were not met. “When the People’s Party couldn’t get what they want, they said they will submit a no-confidence motion and asked the PM to dissolve parliament immediately,” he told Reuters.
Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut, the People’s Party leader, echoed that view, saying the Bhumjaithai Party had failed to honour their terms. “We have tried to use the voice of the opposition to push forward [with] amending the constitution,” he said.