Clinton to Thailand: Be a leader I Bangkok Post

Clinton to Thailand: Be a leader I Bangkok Post
Agence France-Presse, June 14, 2012


WASHINGTON - United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton voiced hope Wednesday that Thailand would play a greater leadership role after years of political turmoil that has shaken the oldest US ally in Asia.

Clinton met in Washington with Thai Foreign Minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul ahead of formal talks Thursday on issues ranging from trade to human rights and the environment.
"We support the kingdom of Thailand assuming a greater leadership role in the region," Clinton told reporters.

"We look forward to working with Thailand in pursuing our common objectives for maintaining peace and prosperity in the Asia Pacific."

Thailand has long been a linchpin of US policy in Asia, with the kingdom then known as Siam famously offering elephants to Abraham Lincoln as he put down secession in the 1861 to 1865 Civil War.

But the US has been concerned that Thailand has been too absorbed in recent years by domestic politics at a time that President Barack Obama's administration is putting a renewed emphasis on Southeast Asia.

Surapong welcomed the greater US focus on Southeast Asia, saying: "We believe that this would help contribute to regional peace and stability, which is important for economic growth and prosperity of the region."

Thailand plunged into chaos in 2006 when royalist generals staged a coup that ousted elected prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, a populist billionaire. More than 90 people died in mass protests in Bangkok in 2010.

Clinton visited Thailand in November and urged reconciliation after an election that brought Thaksin's sister Yingluck Shinawatra to power as prime minister.

Clinton Concludes Landmark Burma Trip

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By BA KAUNG Friday, December 2, 2011

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US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton concluded a landmark visit to Burma on Friday, and left behind several possibilities for a normalization in long-strained relations between the United States and the isolated Southeast Asian country.

During her two-day visit which brought her to Rangoon and Naypyidaw, Clinton met with Burmese President Thein Sein and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, both of whom described her visit as “historic.”

After a formal meeting with Clinton at her home in Rangoon on Friday morning, Suu Kyi said she is happy with the way the US is engaging with Burma, describing the Western superpower's policy as one that aspires to promote the process of democratization.

Speaking at a joint press briefing from the veranda of her Rangoon home with Clinton, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate said, “We are so happy that Secretary Clinton had a very good meeting in Naypyidaw [with President Thein Sein] and we are happy with the way in which the United States is engaging with us. It is true engagement that we hope will promote the process of democratization.”

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