Is Thailand on the verge of another coup?

[Swammerdami]

1. A standoff(?) at the Border.

There are now several wars occupying the attention of US citizens: Russia vs Ukraine; Israel vs Gaza; MAGA vs California; and Israel vs Iran. But the war that occupies our attention in the Land of Smiles is none of these: It is Thailand vs Cambodia, specifically the  2025 Cambodian–Thai border crisis. The details of the relatively minor border dispute are unimportant -- it's mainly a chance for politicians to play games. At least one Cambodian soldier has been shot dead. Some of Thailand's cadets are being mobilized. (My son is a cadet, though not yet mobilized.)

Note that Cambodia is led by  Hun Sen, former battalion commander for the Khmer Rouge, who is now widely condemned as an inhumane dictator.

What should be just a silly border incident has become a big deal here.

2. Coups-d'état in Thailand.

Domestic regime change is no stranger to Thailand, which has had at least 12 successful coups and 31 Prime Ministers since the founding of its current constitutional monarchy in 1932—itself the product of a coup.

If a junta promises a fair election but then cheats, is that considered a coup-d'état? In that case the number of successful coups-d'état may be more than 12.
I had intended to list the recent coups and political unrest but even the crudest summary would require several paragraphs. On  List of prime ministers of Thailand you will find no less than 23 Prime Ministers who have served since Chatichai Choonhaven (head of the 'Buffet government') was deposed in 1991. Each of these changes at Government House comes with its own amusing and/or gruesome story.

3. Three PM's with the same surname

One P.M. -- I'll call him TS -- was ousted in a coup but then led the red-shirt terrorists to set Bangkok on fire in 2010, with the destruction especially aimed at rivals of TS's business empire. TS fled the country into exile to evade criminal charges; among the countries which accepted him was Cambodia whose dictator Hun Sen appointed TS to be a special advisor. Meanwhile TS's sister won election as PM in 2011. She was deposed in a 2014 coup. Unlike most previous juntas -- which held more-or-less free elections shortly after coming to power as though politicians just needed a brief time-out -- the 2014 junta imposed a new constitution intended to perpetuate military control. With their assistance TS's daughter became PM in 2024. I mentioned this earlier:

Buddhist Thailand has had TWO female Prime Ministers recently, though they are the sister and daughter of the infamous Thaksin. The military junta staged a coup d'état to remove the sister (now still in exile as a fugitive criminal) and years later installed the daughter.

A big part of the reason that TS's sister needed to be deposed was her botched attempt to corner the world rice market. That's an amusing story in its own right.

4. A telephone call.

That's the background, but recall that the present PM of Thailand is the daughter of Hun Sen's close friend and special advisor. TS's family probably enjoyed Hun Sen's hospitality when visiting their exiled chief. The PM telephoned Hun Sen, calling him "Uncle", and apologizing for her general's foolish showmanship. Sounds OK to me, especally in a private chat: diplomacy is better than war. But Hun Sen found it expedient for him to publish the audio widely. Apparently it's available at his Facebook page, though I've not tried to click to it.

The phone-call is widely condemned and if the PM doesn't resign, the junta may feel called upon to depose her in yet another coup.

This is all silly and irrelevant compared with the on-going wars that worry Americans, but I thought this account might offer comic relief.