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OO RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
DE RUEHBK #6203/01 2831052
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 101052Z OCT 06
FM AMEMBASSY BANGKOK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 2210
INFO RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHHMUNA/HQ USPACOM HONOLULU HI PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BANGKOK 006203 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PINR TH
SUBJECT: NEW INTERIM CABINET AND SELECT BIOS 
 
REF: BANGKOK 6080 
 
¶1.  (U) Interim PM Surayud Chulanont announced his cabinet 
over the weekend and received the King's royal endorsement on 
October 9.  Dubbed the "cabinet of old men," the 26-member 
interim cabinet have been tasked to improve Thailand's image 
abroad.  They are as follows: 
 
Deputy PM and Finance Minister: Pridiyathorn DEVAKULA 
Deputy PM and Industry Minister: Kosit PANPIEMRAS 
Minister to PM's Office: Tipawadee MEKSAWAN 
Minister to PM's Office: Thirapat SERIRANGSAN 
Minister of Defense: General Boonrawd SOMTHAS 
Minister of Foreign Affairs: Nitya PIBULSONGRAM 
Minister of Commerce: Krirkkrai JIRAPAET 
Minister of Energy: Piyasvasti AMRANAND 
Minister of Interior: Ari WONG-ARAYA 
Minister of Transportation: Adm. Thira HAOCHAROEN 
Minister of Justice: Chanchai LIKHITJITTA 
Minister of Labor: Apai CHANTHANAJULAKA 
Minister of Agriculture: Theera SUTABU 
Minister of Education: Wijit SRISA-ARN 
Minister of Culture: Khaisri SRI-AROON 
Minister of Science and Tech: Yongyuth YUTHAWONGSE 
Minister of Public Health: Mongkol NA SONGKHLA 
Minister of Environment: Kasem SANITWONG NA AYUTTHAYA 
Minister of Information Tech: Sitthichai POKAI-UDOM 
Minister of Tourism and Sports: Suwit YODMANEE 
Minister of Social Development: Paibool WATANASIRITHAM 
Deputy Foreign Minister: Chaowanit KONGSIRI 
Deputy Interior Minister: Banyat CHANSENA 
Deputy Transport Minister: Sansern WONGCHA-RUN 
Deputy Industry Minister: Piyabutr CHOLWICHARN 
 
¶2.  (U) Bios for select interim ministers are listed below. 
Reftel provides bio background on economic ministries. 
Septel provides initial analysis of the new cabinet. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) GENERAL BOONRAWD SOMTHAS - INTERIM DEFENSE 
MINISTER: Born November 17, 1941. 
 
A former classmate of PM Surayud (Armed Forces Preparatory 
School (Class 1), CRMA (Class 12)), Boonrawd served as 
Surayud's Chief of Staff when Surayud became the Army 
Commander-in-Chief (CINC) from 2000-01.  He served as the 
Chief of Staff for the Royal Thai Supreme Commander from 2001 
until he reached the mandatory retirement age of sixty a year 
later.  It is unclear what Boonrawd has been doing since 
retirement. 
 
Experience: 
 
Few details are known about Boonrawd's early career other 
than he volunteered for Special Forces training in the late 
1960s along with Surayud and a few other Class 12 classmates. 
 
October 1989 - March 1991 -- Commander of the First Special 
Forces Regimen, First Special Force Division, Royal Thai Army 
(RTA). 
 
April 1991 - March 1992 -- Aide to the Minister of Defense. 
April 1992 - September 1993 -- Commander of the Second 
Special Forces Division, RTA. 
October 1993 - September 1995 -- Deputy Commander of the RTA 
Special Warfare Command. 
October 1995 - March 1996 -- Expert attached to the 
Headquarters (HQ) RTA. 
April 1996 - September 1997 -- Senior Specialist Attached to 
HQ RTA as Lt. General. 
October 1997 - March 1999 -- Assistant Chief of Staff for 
Intelligence, RTA. 
April 1999 - September 2000 -- Deputy Chief of Staff, RTA. 
October 2000 - September 2001 -- Chief of Staff, RTA. 
October 2001 - September 2002 -- Chief of Staff, Royal Thai 
Supreme Command. 
Retired from active duty September 30, 2002. 
 
Promotions: 
 
Major General -- April 1991 
Lt. General -- May 1996 
Full General -- October 2000 
 
He worked on the Khmer Resistance with both RTA Special 
Forces (1980s) with the Special Warfare Command First Special 
Forces Division (with Surayud) and later as the Chief of RTA 
Special Operations Element 315. Boonrawd was a long-time 
Embassy contact.  He has been considered pro-American, 
although he had also maintained close personal connections to 
 
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French military and commercial business contacts. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) NITYA PIBULSONGRAM -- INTERIM FOREIGN MINISTER: 
Born June 30, 1941. 
 
Former Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs 
(and career diplomat who once served as the Thai Ambassador 
to the US), Nitya was Chief Negotiator for the Thailand-US 
FTA from July 2004 to January 2006.  After his retirement 
from the Foreign Service in September 2001, he was appointed 
as Advisor to the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Surakiart 
Sathirathai) and served in the post until January 2005.  He 
was named Advisor to the Deputy Prime Minister (Surakiart 
Sathirathai) in March 2005 and remained in this position 
until the end of the second Thaksin Administration in early 
¶2006. 
 
Prior to his MFA Permanent Secretary term (February 2000 to 
September 2001), Nitya served as Ambassador Extraordinary and 
Plenipotentiary to the United States (1996-2000), Permanent 
Representative of Thailand to the United Nations (1988-1996), 
and Director-General of the Department of International 
Organizations of the MFA (1983-1987).  He was appointed to 
the Deputy Director-General of the Information Department in 
1980, and a year later switched to the Deputy 
Director-General of the Department of Political Affairs.  He 
was once appointed ambassador-at-large in the Foreign 
Ministry, in charge of special political issues.  He began 
his career in Thailand's Foreign Service in 1968. 
 
Born in Bangkok, Nitya received his BA in Government from 
Dartmouth College and his MA in Political Science from Brown 
University.  He is married to Pacharin (Patricia) Osmond. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) ARI WONG-ARAYA -- INTERIM INTERIOR MINISTER: Born 
February 1935. 
 
Born a Muslim in Bangkok, Ari obtained his BA in Political 
Science from Chulalongkorn University in 1959, a MS in 
Community Development and Certificate of Presidential 
Assistant in Community Development from University of the 
Philippines (College of Agriculture at Los Banos), and a MS 
in Public Administration from University of Missouri 
(Columbia). He also attended the National Defense College, 
Class 27. 
 
Ari began his career in Ministry of Interior as a police 
constable in 1960 before moving to Department of Community 
Development in 1962, to which he became Director of 
Operations in 1969. From 1976 to 1984, Ari was governor to 
Satun, Saraburi, Prachinburi, and Suphanburi provinces.  Ari 
was appointed the Deputy Interior Perm.-Sec. twice--in 1988 
and 1991. He was Director-General of Land Department in 1990, 
and named the Interior Perm.-Sec. in 1993 before his 
retirement in 1996. 
 
Ari,s rise to higher ranks was attributed by some to his 
wide connections with politicians.  Ari is said to be close 
to the ex-PM Gen. Chawalit Yongchaiyut and the ex-PM Banhan 
Sinlapa-acha; he does not enjoy a good relationship with the 
Democrat Party. He is reportedly favored by the Crown Prince. 
 
In October 2004, Ari joined Thaksin Shinawatra,s first 
administration as the Deputy Education Minister.  He served 
in that post until March 2005.  He resigned from the 
Thai-Rak-Thai (TRT) Party shortly after his tenure in 
Thaksin,s cabinet to become the President of the Islamic 
Bank of Thailand, but encouraged his son, Ekkaphot, to enter 
politics under the TRT ticket in 2005.  His son was elected 
as a MP from Bangkok in 2005 and remains in the TRT today. 
Ari is also a Board Member of the Central Islamic Committee 
of Thailand. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) CHANCHAI LIKHITJITTA -- INTERIM JUSTICE MINISTER: 
Born April 25, 1946. 
 
Chanchai graduated from Ban Somdet Chaophaya Teachers, 
College (currently known as Rajabhat University) in 
education, and later received an LL.B. (Hons.) from Thammasat 
University (1969). He also received a Barrister-at-Law from 
the Institute of Legal Education, the Thai Bar in 1971. 
Chanchai was a career judge to the Court of Justice. He has 
climbed up through the ranks until becoming President of the 
Supreme Court of Justice in October 2005 before reaching his 
retirement in September 2006. His significant posts in the 
past included Presiding Judge of the Civil Court, Justice of 
the Court of Appeal, Justice of the Supreme Court, Chief 
Justice of the Juvenile and Family Division of the Court of 
Appeal, Presiding Justice of the Supreme Court, and Vice 
 
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President of the Supreme Court. 
After his retirement, Chanchai was appointed to his current 
post as Senior Judge to the Thongburi District Civil Court. 
 
¶7. (SBU) ADM THIRA HAOCHAROEN  - INTERIM TRANSPORTATION 
MINISTER: Born April 6, 1940 
 
Admiral Thira is not well-known to the embassy.  At this 
point, we are able to provide only the following background: 
 
Educational Background 
1963 -- Naval Academy, Royal Thai Navy (RTN) 
1975 -- Naval Staff College, Royal Thai Navy 
1982 -- Naval Command College, Naval War College -- US 
1990 -- Naval War College, Royal Thai Navy 
1994 -- National Defense College 
 
Career 
 
1975-  -Commanding Officer, HTMS. Chang 
1978-  -Aide-de-Camp to the Commander-in-Chief 
1984-  -Staff Officer to the Commander-in-Chief 
1986-  -Thai Naval Attache -- Washington D.C. 
1990-  -Chief, Naval Secretariat 
1992-  -Deputy Commandant, Naval Academy 
1993-  -Commandant, Naval War College 
1994-  -Assistant Chief of Staff for Logistics 
1995-  -Deputy Chief of Staff 
1996-  -Chief of Staff 
1997-  -RTN Deputy Commander-in-Chief 
1998-  -RTN Commander-in-Chief 
ARVIZU