Mongkol Na Songkhla said in a telephone interview from the US, said Clinton had backed Thailand's decision to award compulsory licensing of the US-made anti-viral drug Efavirenz in November last year.

The decision was followed by Brazil's decision to also break the patent on Efavirenz last Friday.

   "I strongly support the position of the governments of Thailand and Brazil and their decision after futile negotiations to break these patents," Mongkol quoted Clinton as saying.

 Mongkol travelled to the US on Monday to explain Thailand's reasons for awarding compulsory licensing - a legal action to break patent protection allowed under World Trade Organization (WTO) rules - on three patented drugs.

 Thailand broke the patent on Efavirenz produced by US pharmaceutical company MerckSharp and Dohme last November, and decided to do the same for Kaletra, another anti-HIV/Aids treatment made by US firm Abbott Laboratories, and  Plavis, a blood-thinning drug made by Sanofi-Aventis, in January of this year.

 The Thai minister was in New York to sign an agreement with the Clinton Foundation and 16 other developing countries for bulk purchases of essential drugs at cheap prices.

The Nation