LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Thailand's constitutional court has removed the prime minister after a leaked phone call with Cambodia's former prime minister about a border dispute. The ruling is likely to plunge the country into more political and economic uncertainty. Reporter Michael Sullivan joins us now from Thailand to talk about this. Good morning, Michael.
MICHAEL SULLIVAN, BYLINE: Hi, Leila.
FADEL: OK, so tell me what happened at the court today and whether this was a surprise.
SULLIVAN: Not really. Paetongtarn Shinawatra had already been suspended by the court two months ago while it considered this petition filed by opposition senators to have her removed over her handling of the border dispute, specifically the leaked phone call between her and former Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, a family friend, a call in which she called him uncle and referred to a Thai army general as an opponent. Now, this infuriated many here, especially among the more conservative elements. And the senators who filed the petition alleged her comments showed a lack of responsibility and integrity that warranted her dismissal. And the constitutional court, which leans conservative, today apparently agreed.
It said she had failed to follow ethical standards in that phone call leaked by Hun Sen. And in July, the two countries engaged in five days of pretty intense fighting over that disputed border. It left dozens dead on both sides and hundreds of thousands displaced. And that didn't help her cause either. In its 6-3 decision, the court said Paetongtarn had put her private interests before the nation's, and it damaged the country's reputation.
FADEL: And she didn't last very long in the job, did she? Barely a year, right?
SULLIVAN: Yeah, that's right. But she comes from the most prominent Thai political dynasty of the past few decades, the Shinawatra clan, and was thrust into the job as a 37-year-old political novice. Her Pheu Thai Party heads a coalition government which retains a slim majority in Parliament. Slim because the second largest member of the coalition withdrew its support after that leaked phone call. And that coalition now looks even shakier.
FADEL: OK, so with this news, what happens next?
SULLIVAN: A political feeding frenzy. I mean, presumably her father, Thaksin Shinawatra, the power behind the party, will try to twist enough arms to convince other parties to keep the Pheu Thai-led coalition in power. The deputy prime minister will be the caretaker prime minister until a new one is chosen. There's no date set yet. There are five people eligible, only one of whom is from Pheu Thai.
Now, Paetongtarn becomes the third member of her family to be removed from office. In 2006, her father Thaksin was ousted in a coup by the country's military. In 2014, the constitutional court removed her aunt, Yingluck, weeks before the military staged another coup. And it does appear, Leila, that the decades old Shinawatra brand has kind of lost its luster, possibly for good. But the political uncertainty that follows her removal probably isn't going to help the already struggling Thai economy either.
FADEL: And how will this impact U.S.-Thai relations, if at all?
SULLIVAN: I don't think it should, really. I mean, Thailand is one of the U.S.'s largest trading partners in Southeast Asia, and that's not expected to change. And the U.S. is Thailand's largest export destination, though China is its No. 1 trading partner overall. Thailand is also the oldest U.S. treaty ally in Southeast Asia. And that relationship is not expected to change in the short term either. Though, Thailand has been leaning a bit more lately towards China in its geopolitical balancing act.
FADEL: That's reporter Michael Sullivan joining us from Thailand. Thank you, Michael.
SULLIVAN: You're welcome.
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