Diplomat tipped as FM

Prime Minister

Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej said yesterday that he had submitted for His Majesty the King's endorsement the name of a new foreign minister to replace Tej Bunnag, who resigned on Wednesday.

Speculation tipped career diplomat Saroj Chavanavirat as the new minister.

Samak neither denied nor confirmed the speculation. "Don't guess by asking me 20 questions. I could say he is a man and a new guy. He might not be as handsome as the opposition leader [Abhisit Vejjajiva]," Samak said when asked if the new minister looked good.

No other name was floated, and a senior official at the Foreign Ministry said that he believed Saroj would be appointed as the new minister.

Saroj, 66, climbed the diplomatic career ladder during the conflict in Cambodia between the late 1970s and the early 1990s. He was head of many departments, a spokesman at the ministry and ambassador to several countries, including Singapore and France.

He took the top post in the foreign service at the ministry as permanent secretary-general in 1996.

His last position before retirement in 2002 was as ambassador to Paris. He was later picked as an adviser to then foreign minister Surakiart Sathirathai.