 In May 2006, General [[Sonthi Boonyaratglin]] issued assurances that the military would not seize power.On 20 July 2006, around a hundred middle-ranking army officers said to be supporters of [[Thaksin Shinawatra|Thaksin]] were reassigned by the army high command, fuelling rumors that the army was divided between supporters and opponents of the prime minister.In July 2006, 3rd Army Area Commander Saprang Kalayanamitr gave an interview in which he stated that Thai politics was below standard and that the kingdom's leadership was weak.