Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha reiterated today that he is receptive to the opinions of all parties and believes that dialogue, involving all stakeholders, is the best approach to resolving the current political conflict.

He said that he has never dictated how the conflict should be resolved, because he believes that there is a solution to every problem, if all parties are sincere in wanting to work together within the scope of the law.

“Problems must be resolved through legal means. Without laws, a country cannot exist. In a democracy, there must be laws and rules, which must be followed, and this is the way that is acceptable to the majority of the people,” said the prime minister.

He declined to comment on a rumour that four protest leaders, namely Parit Chivarak, Panupong Jardnok, Panasaya Sitthijirawattanakul and Chonthicha Jaengraew, have applied for political asylum in the United States.

Commenting on the issue, Saravuth Petpanomporn, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said that they are checking the veracity of the report.

The US Embassy in Bangkok has, however, denied any involvement in political matters in Thailand, adding that the citizenship and immigration service is the only US agency that deals with political asylum seekers.