Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn can return to Germany without visa, Berlin says

Name: Thai protesters call on king to give up US$40 billion royal fortune
Uploaded: 2021-01-06T23:00:19.000Z
Duration: 2 min 18 s
Description: Thai protesters call on king to give up US$40 billion royal fortune

The monarch spent much of his time in the European country after taking the throne, but went back to Thailand last October amid mass demonstrations

Protesters also marched to the German embassy in Bangkok, asking Berlin to look into whether the king had conducted state business while on German soil

Reading Time:2 minutes

Why you can trust SCMP

Queen Suthida wipes the sweat off the face of Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn as they greet to well-wishers in Bangkok in November. Photo: EPA-EFE

Reuters

Published: 7:00am, 7 Jan 2021Updated: 8:16am, 7 Jan 2021

Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn does not need a visa to re-enter Germany, where the monarch has spent much of his time since taking the throne in 2016, the Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.

The king, 68, returned to Thailand in October amid mass student-led protests demanding curbs to new powers he has taken, plus the resignation of the ultra-royalist prime minister, who first seized power in a military coup.

It is unclear whether the king plans to return to Bavaria – where he spent much of 2020, drawing criticism as he and his entourage stayed in a hotel during the first coronavirus lockdown even though hotels were supposed to shut.

In an answer to a parliamentary question from the opposition Linke (Left) party, the foreign ministry said the king has not needed a visa to visit Germany since he became head of state.

02:18

Thai protesters call on king to give up US$40 billion royal fortune

Sevim Dagdelen, a member of parliament for the opposition Linke party, said if the king needed no visa then the German government could not influence how long he stayed, but as a last resort could declare him persona non grata (undesirable person).