Nicaragua came up in the Thai press in late February when it was named as a country prepared to offer shelter to fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

But Nicaragua has not only given Thaksin special citizenship, the central American state has also granted him a passport.

A picture of Thaksin shaking hands with a man believed to be Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega during a visit to the capital Managua was published by a local newspaper, and later released to international media outlets.

Late last year, small countries in the Atlantic and Africa were said to have offered the ex-PM safe-haven and similar roles. Thaksin claimed he had honorary citizenship or advisory positions for trade promotion.

Nicaragua was of interest to Thais as Thaksin was reported to have used his Nicaraguan passport to travel.

The Foreign Ministry revoked Thaksin's regular passport last week after he urged the red shirts to rise up against Abhisit government and the Asean summit venue in Pattaya was overrun.

While Thais were not sure initially whether Thaksin received another passport, the Nicaraguan government said it had granted the fugitive ex-PM a diplomatic passport.

Thaksin was to be accredited as an ambassador with a "special mission" to help bring in investment.

On Sunday, United Arab Emirates' Arabian Business reported that Thaksin had left the UAE for Nicaragua.

Thailand does not have an extradition agreement with Nicaragua, but the Thai government wants to try to negotiate an extradition treaty with the country.

At the same time, Nicaraguan media reported opposition MPs questioning what the country would get from Ortega's decision to support Thaksin. Some feared his move could be illegal.

Thai papers and news agencies reported that the Nicaraguan opposition party warned Ortega's government, after it granted Thaksin a diplomatic passport, that his position did not warrant such accreditation, even if there were plans to appoint him as an investment consultant for the country.

A report in the Nicaraguan press said Vice President Jaime Morales, who is responsible for overseas investor relations, did not have a close relationship with Thai ex-premier. However, Thaksin's appointment as a special ambassador for the country looked to have been recommended by one or more of Ortega's advisors, the media reported.

The report said the Nicaraguan government remained quiet about the issue, fearful that it could be lead to a conflict between the two countries.

Thais are also interested why Ortega opted to support Thaksin. Some Thai and Nicaraguan media reported that Ortega met Thaksin when he was Thai PM. The relationship allegedly started because Ortega said his country was interested in investment in telecommunication and energy.

When Ortega led Nicaragua in the 80s, the government seized property from the wealthy during the 1979 Sandinista revolution. He also led the country through civil war with anti-American and Marxism ideologies. But during his election campaign in 2006, he said he would support foreign investment as he wanted to fight poverty in his land.

--The Nation / Asia News Network