Kantathi Suphamongkhon

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Kantathi Suphamongkhon
กันตธีร์ ศุภมงคล
Kantathi Suphamongkhon in 2008
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office 11 March 2005 – 19 September 2006
Prime Minister	Thaksin Shinawatra
Preceded by	Surakiart Sathirathai
Succeeded by	Nitya Pibulsonggram
Thai Trade Representative
In office March 2001 – March 2005
Member of Parliament
In office 2001–2005
Director of Policy and Planning, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
In office 1992–1994
Representative of Thailand at the United Nations, New York
In office 1987–1991
Personal details
Born	(1952-04-03) April 3, 1952 (age 72) Bangkok, Thailand
Political party	Thai Rak Thai Party
Spouse	Soparvan Suphamongkhon
Children	Renee Dootsdi Suphamongkhon
Parents	Ambassador Konthi Suphamongkhon (father) Khunying Dootsdi Suphamongkhon (mother)
Alma mater	USC, PhD American University, MA UCLA, BA
Profession	Professor diplomat politician business executive

Kantathi Suphamongkhon (Thai กันตธีร์ ศุภมงคล, born 3 April 1952) is a Thai diplomat, politician, university professor and a real estate developer. He served as the 39th minister of foreign affairs of Thailand from 11 March 2005 until the military coup d'état on 19 September 2006. In that capacity, he also served as chairman of the Human Security Network, established in 1999 as an association of countries working to promote the concept of human security as a feature of national and international public policy.^[1][2][3]

While foreign minister, Kantathi enhanced Thailand's diplomatic role in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and in the world at large. He advanced Thailand's constructive role in global affairs. Among other things, while in Pyongyang on several occasions, Kantathi encouraged the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) or North Korea to enter or resume the Six-Party Talks. He had been to the DPRK several times and has worked closely with the then U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, the People's Republic of China's Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing, and the Republic of Korea's Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon, with the goal of maintaining peace and security on the Korean Peninsula.^[4][5]

Kantathi has been appointed University of California Regents' Professor at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) as well as senior fellow at the Burkle Center for International Relations at UCLA. As distinguished professor of law and diplomacy, he taught law, diplomacy and international trade at UCLA from 2007 until 2014 in various departments and schools, namely department of political science, International Institute and Anderson School of Management. Kantathi is presently a member of the advisory board of the RAND Corporation Center for Asia Pacific Policy.^[6]