Summary: "The appointment of a new foreign minister, Kantathi Suphamongkhon, will not substantially change Thailand?s "constructive engagement" policy towards Burma, according to a key Foreign Ministry (MFA) official responsible for Burma. Kantathi has already publicly (and privately) made clear that Thailand will not join a movement to thwart Burma from assuming the ASEAN chairmanship in 2006 if it has not implemented democratic reforms before then. The MFA official said the Burma chairmanship issue will be discussed informally in Cebu, but he doubted that other ASEAN governments -- despite some recent statements -- were serious about pressuring Burma on that issue. On related matters, the "Bangkok Process" appears dead because the SPDC does not want to engage potential critics while it still has not achieved any reform progress with which to respond. The Thai believe that the European Union (EU) is on the verge of softening its policy towards Burma." End Summary.