Thailand's powerful King Maha Vajiralongkorn late Friday described an unprecedented move to make his older sister Princess Ubolratana prime minister as "highly inappropriate" and against "royal traditions". Ubolratana, 67, the older sister of Vajiralongkorn, was announced hours earlier as a candidate in the upcoming elections for the Thai Raksa Chart party, which is steered by the divisive Shinawatra political clan.

Her shock entrance into frontline Thai politics was a first by a member of the powerful royal family and promised to reshape the political landscape of the country. But a late-night statement from the palace left no doubt over the King's displeasure at the move. "The king and royal family exist in a status above politics," said the statement, published in the Royal Gazette and given blanket television coverage.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2019