US zoo to return beloved giant pandas to China
27 March, 2019
The United States said on Tuesday (Mar 26) that it saw "positive signs" of a return to democracy in Thailand but urged a transparent probe of allegedly widespread irregularities.
The United States said it did not support any individual party but looked forward to working with whichever government emerges following Sunday's election, the first since a 2014 coup.
"The voting along with, we note, robust media coverage of the process and open debate of its merits, those are positive signs for a return to a democratic government that reflects the will of the people," State Department spokesman Robert Palladino told reporters.
"We stand with the Thai people in calling for the expeditious announcement of voting results and a fair and transparent investigation of any reported irregularities," Palladino said.
Pro-democracy parties are looking to thwart the continuation in power of junta chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha after a party backed by the army chief turned election campaigner won a majority in preliminary results.
The Asian Network for Free Elections, an observation group funded by the United States, said that nearly 1.9 million ballots were invalidated, or around 5.6 per cent of the total, and called the vote-counting "deeply flawed."
Ousted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, a tycoon who lives in self-imposed exile but looms large over Thailand's politics, in an interview with AFP said that the military "rigged" the election to maintain its grip.
Thailand is the oldest US ally in Asia but Washington suspended some security assistance following the 2014 coup as required under a US law that prohibits support to regimes that overthrow democracies.
The aftermath of the coup raised US concerns that Thailand is increasingly tilting toward China, which has shown no reluctance to work with the military government.