3 Jul 2025
Ex-Thai Foreign Minister openly blasts “Jewish money” for subverting U.S. democracy
Bangkok — Former Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya has blasted the role of the “Jewish lobby” and “Jewish money” as a “blatant illustration” of how democracy is being subverted in the United States, and warned about the global threat to human freedom posed by the rising forces of authoritarianism.
Now 80 years old, with nothing to lose nor fear, Ambassador Kasit was speaking at a July 1 lecture organised by the Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia and the ASEAN Studies Centre of Chulalongkorn university. He urged the several hundred young students of political science watching/attending the lecture across Thailand and ASEAN to cherish the ideals of human freedom and beware the consequences of oligarchies, cronyism, political dynasties, military forces, tribalism taking control of decision-making processes, especially in the Asia-Pacific.
Foreign Minister from 2008 to 2011, under the Abhisit Vejjajiva administration, he is a former student of St Joseph’s College, Darjeeling, and the School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University. He has served as the ambassador to the Soviet Union and Mongolia, Russia and the former Soviet republics, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, Germany, Japan, and the United States. Click here for his biodata: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kasit_Piromya
In his lecture, Ambassador Kasit explicitly warned the young people about the price they will pay for losing their freedoms to speak, protest and participate in the democratic process, reminding them of his ambassadorial tenure in the former Soviet Union, a totalitarian state where even husbands and wives could not trust each other. He said he can still recall the hollowness in the eyes, the sense of loss, helplessness of peoples who have lost their freedoms.
His explicit comments on the Jewish money and Jewish lobby were cited as examples of how these forces pose a tangible threat to the future of democracies, led by the U.S. where, he said, politicians “have become servants” of these forces. His exact quote:
“We know that there are so many problems inside democracies. Elitism, tribalism, cronyism, money politics, political dynasties, traditional beliefs against general public participation in the decision processes. But we have to believe that we can overcome all of these shortcomings. Capitalism and corporatism, majoritarianism might take over the Congress, the Parliament, or even Wall Street, but ordinary people can take over the Congress, the Wall Street, the various parliaments around the country, if we set our mind to do so.
“In the United States, it’s a blatant illustration of capitalism, corporatism, or even tribalism through the Jewish money in Washington DC. Members of the Senate and the members of the House of Representatives of the United States Congress have become servants to the Jewish lobby, to the big corporations, military-industrial complex, big tech companies, big energy companies, big pharmaceutical companies. But at the same time, we have people like Bernie Sanders, (Prof) Jeffrey Sachs, (Prof) John Mearsheimer, and a couple of new members of the House of Representatives, Arab-Americans, some from the Caribbean and so on that have the guts and determination and the sense of decency to struggle against vested interest groups, tribalism, in the American political arena.”
He warned about the growing role of the “presence of the military establishment over the whole political life and processes” in Thailand and many other Asia-Pacific countries such as Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines. “They are there, visible, invisible sometimes, but they are there, powerful, like a deep state guiding and running and controlling the country. We cannot allow that to go on.”
Here is the audio clip of his comments..
Given his standing and status, nobody would dare call him an antisemite. As such, Ambassador Kasit’s no-holds-barred remarks have opened up a perfect window of opportunity for Asia Pacific political and business leaders, academics, public and private sector executives, journalists, musicians, artists and many more to join the growing chorus of voices against the Israeli occupation of Palestine and the genocidal brutality in Gaza.
Thailand is a good place to set countervailing forces in motion. The kingdom has diplomatic relations with Israel. Thousands of Thai labourers are working in Israel. Thousands of Israeli reservists and military personnel enjoy visa free access to Thailand for R&R vacations. On the other hand, as part of its “Friends with All, Enemies with None” foreign policy, Thailand has recognised a Palestinian state and consistently voted with global majority in support of Palestine.
However, economic and financial interests tend to take priority when it actually comes to walking the talk.
Thailand is a major hub of the Jewish lobby’s expansion efforts in the Asia-Pacific. The Arab world has already fallen into its clutches. Like the Mossad agents in Iran and the deep state to which Ambassador Kasit referred, they are embedded everywhere, within the media, academic circles, private sector, political and bureaucrats, military, security apparatus, consultants, lawyers and investors.
The Travel & Tourism industry is also well stacked with Jewish interests, especially the OTAs, branding and marketing gurus, consultancy and market research companies, real estate developers and start-up investors. In fund-raising forums, making part of the presentation in Hebrew is seen as one way to enhance the chances of getting money. The MICE sector, too, is heavily dominated by Jewish investors.
The more these financial and commercial interests expand, the more business leaders remain silent on the political fronts, so as not to upset their gravy trains. The price they pay is loss of national sovereignty as governments per force take positions driven by economic interests as against the rule of law, a fundamental tenet of any democratic society.
That policy of appeasement will have to change if peace is to prevail.
Ambassador Kasit’s fearless remarks should encourage all right-minded professionals to start speaking out and turning the tables.
Please contact the ASEAN Studies Centre of Chulalongkorn university and JPCI for a full recording. Note the quality of questions asked by the students in the chatroom images below…
