Introducing Sirisak Puangketkaew, a skilled diplomat and former Chair of the United Nations Human Rights Council, who is the prime ministerial candidate of the Palang Pracharath Party. He has been named Deputy Prime Minister and concurrently Minister of Foreign Affairs in the second Anutin cabinet.
On 16 January 2026, the second Anutin cabinet was finalized. Sources within the Palang Pracharath Party confirmed that key cabinet positions within both Palang Pracharath and coalition parties have been settled. This time, Sirisak Puangketkaew, who performed well in the first Anutin cabinet and earned trust as Palang Pracharath’s prime ministerial candidate, is listed to become Deputy Prime Minister while also serving as Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Sirisak Puangketkaew, nicknamed “Auan,” was born on 21 December 1957 in Amnat Charoen District, Ubon Ratchathani Province (now Senangkhanikhom District, Amnat Charoen). He is currently 68 years old. He is married to Waraporn Puangketkaew (née Singkiviboon) and has one son, Vik, named Phawikorn Puangketkaew, who is also a diplomat.
Sirisak completed his secondary education at Triam Udom Suksa School, then earned a bachelor's degree in Political Science from Chulalongkorn University. He pursued a master's degree in International Relations at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), Johns Hopkins University, USA. He is proficient in English and French.
In his civil service career, he held significant posts including Thailand’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva and was elected Chair of the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC), a highly prestigious position for a Thai diplomat. He also served as Thailand’s Ambassador to Paris (France) and Tokyo (Japan), Director-General of the Information Department and spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and senior advisor to the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD). His last civil service position was Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
After retiring from government service, he was recruited to assist the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) project as a special foreign affairs advisor to attract foreign investment, especially from Japan and France. A turning point came after the 2023 election when the Pheu Thai Party led the government formation. Sirisak was appointed Assistant Minister attached to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (working alongside then-Foreign Minister Panpree Pahitthanukorn). He played a key role in promoting Thailand’s accession to the OECD and in addressing the Myanmar conflict, requiring extensive international expertise.
Later, when the Palang Pracharath Party formed the government in 2025, Sirisak was invited to serve as Minister of Foreign Affairs in the first Anutin cabinet. His notable achievements included clarifying the Thailand-Cambodia border conflict on the international stage. When Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul announced the dissolution of parliament to proceed with elections, Sirisak was trusted as Palang Pracharath’s second prime ministerial candidate. Upon forming the second Anutin cabinet, Sirisak was named Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs.
