12 Aug 69

Foreign media reports "Thailand" may reduce the level of military cooperation if the "United States" takes high-rate tariff measures.

Bloomberg News Agency and several international media outlets have reported that Thailand may consider reducing its level of military cooperation, including Cobra Gold, if the U.S. government advances high-rate import tariffs.

According to an insider, the Thai government is preparing to put the issue in a proposal for trade talks with the United States that will take place at the end of August, which is seen by international media as an infrequent move that Thailand has raised the issue of a decades-long security alliance as a bargaining tool in the trade arena.

Although the proposal was drawn up with broad wording, officials have indicated that Thailand may need to review its joint military action if the U.S. tax hike seriously affects Thailand's economic system.

In 2025, Thailand has a trade surplus with the United States of $5.14 billion (about $1.7 trillion), which Thailand is currently trying to negotiate for a reduction in tariffs after the U.S. government announced a 12.5% tariff plan on most of Thailand's exports under Article 301 of the U.S. Trade Law.

In addition, while the United States was expanding its monitoring of overcapacity, the Thai side proposed to repeal the tariff and apply U.S. standards to beef, lamb and alcohol imports in return.

Today, Thailand is one of only two U.S. treaty ally countries in Southeast Asia (along with the Philippines) whose alliance has long been a cornerstone of U.S. military strategy in the mainland Asia region.

A spokesman for the Thai Ministry of Defense told international media that the Ministry has not yet been able to confirm the proposal, but believes that future negotiations will focus on strengthening cooperation, while the US Pentagon has not yet commented on the case.

However, the report says that senior Thai officials are trying to address the overall relationship to demand fair trade terms with the United States, with Commerce Minister Suthayi Suthabhan saying in July that Thailand should be treated as a close ally because of its strategic cooperation and the Treaty of Amity, as well as Thailand's continued investment in the United States.

Mrs. Suthayi also stated that the talks were a collaboration of all sectors, the State Department, the Ministry of Defense and the business sector. Thailand also promised to accelerate the ban on the import of goods produced by forced labor to meet U.S. concerns.

The Thai-US alliance is the oldest U.S. relationship in Asia and a key strategic point amid the expansion of China's influence in the region, with both countries co-hosting the Cobra Gold Exercise, the largest multinational military exercise in Southeast Asia, with the 2025 participation of over 8,000 personnel from 30 countries.

The military cooperation of the two countries has been through a period of tension, such as after the 2014 coup in which the United States ordered the downsizing of the Cobra Gold exercise and the suspension of some cooperation, before later resuming relations.

Most recently, last week, U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Elbridge Colby visited Bangkok and met with Defense Secretary General Thrapong Malabham to confirm the strength of the newly revitalized Thai-U.S. alliance.