Thailand's Thaksin-linked party says aims to form coalition government

Reuters

BANGKOK (Reuters) - The Pheu Thai party linked to Thailand's self-exiled former leader Thaksin Shinawatra said on Monday that it had opened negotiations with other anti-junta parties to try to form a government, though the results of Sunday's general election remain unclear. "The formation of this government must answer to the will of the people and move the country towards a more democratic direction," Sudarat Keyuraphan, the party's candidate for prime minister told a news conference. Only partial results have been announced from Sunday's poll, the country's first since a 2014 military coup, and a clear picture is unlikely to emerge before Friday. Phumtham Wechayachai, Pheu Thai's secretary-general‎, said the votes cast for anti-junta parties showed a desire to return to democratic rule and that must be respected. "From today, we will start negotiating with other parties (to form a government)," he told the news conference. (Reporting by Patpicha Tanakasempipat; Editing by SImon Cameron-Moore)