BANGKOK — The U.S. ambassador to Thailand dismissed claims of American interference in recent elections as a “disservice” to the Thai people, saying Tuesday that Washington does not support any individual candidate or political party.
Claims of the U.S. meddling in the May 14 vote have swirled since the opposition Move Forward Party emerged as the top vote getter and another opposition party came in second, raising the possibility of a new coalition government that could take power from Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha.
The Move Forward Party is seen as nominally more pro-American than Prayuth, a former general who initially came to power in a military coup nine years ago, and the claims of American interference in the election are widely seen as originating from supporters of the current status quo.
A small group of protesters even demonstrated in front of the U.S. Embassy in April, accusing Washington of interfering in Thailand political affairs.
At a roundtable with dozens of Thai journalists, Ambassador Robert Godec said when asked about the rumors and conspiracy theories that they “do a disservice to the tens of millions who participated in the political process as voters, as election officials, as poll watchers.”
“Given the persistent and pernicious conspiracy theories, let me be clear,” Godec said. “We categorically reject the false rumors that the United States interfered in the Thai election.”
The Move Forward Party has signed an agreement with seven other parties on a joint platform that they hope will lead to the formation of a coalition government in July. It made no mention of Move Forward’s contentious call for the amendment of a harsh law against criticizing the country’s monarchy, a position that has drawn the ire of conservative Thais.
It did include several of Move Forward’s core policies, however, such as drafting a new more democratic constitution, passing a same-sex marriage law, decentralizing administrative power and…
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