Today, July 14, it became known that the government plane of the Prince of Thailand, who arrived this week on a private visit to Germany, was seized by German authorities due to debts that Thailand has not been able to pay to Germany for 20 years. It is unknown where the prince is now, writes The Telegraph.

The Boeing 737 Royal Flight, flown by Prince Maha Vajiralonkorn, was detained by German border guards at Munich airport. The seizure of the property of the Thai prince was authorized by the court. The prince's plane was hijacked because Thailand refused to pay $42 million the kingdom owed to German construction firm Walter Bau AG.

The Thai government has signed a contract for the construction of a toll highway leading to Bangkok's Don Maung Airport with a German firm for more than 20 years. Since then, Walter Bau AG has gone bankrupt.

The decision to take such harsh measures, the German Air Force said, was a last resort to force Thailand to pay.

“We regret the inconvenience caused to the prince in connection with the seizure of his property,” said representatives of the German Foreign Ministry, without offering Maha Vajiralonkorn any assistance.

The seizure of the Thai government's property was authorized by an international arbitration court back in 2009. However, the plane was detained only now, although the prince flies on the state airliner to Germany quite often. As a rule, government aircraft enjoy diplomatic immunity, but this does not apply in cases where officials use government transport for private visits abroad.

According to the press secretary of the Munich airport, the crown prince arrived in southern Germany on board a Boeing 737, but he does not have any information about where the prince is now. The Thai Embassy in Berlin has not yet commented on this incident.

Maha Vajiralonkorn, 58, is preparing to soon succeed his father, 83-year-old Bhumibol Adulyadej, as head of state. The King of Thailand has been experiencing serious health problems lately.

Based on materials from Vesti.Ru

Germany seizes the plane of the Prince of Thailand