The Kingdom of Thailand is one of the United States’ oldest treaty partners in mainland Asia, a treaty ally since 1954, and a major non-NATO ally since 2003. The Royal Thai Armed Forces have strengthened their interoperability with U.S. forces by making significant purchases of U.S.-origin defense articles. The United States has $2.7 billion in Foreign Military Sales (FMS). FMS sales notified to Congress are listed here, and recent and significant implemented sales include: Stryker infantry carrier vehicles; AH-6i light attack reconnaissance, UH-60M Black Hawk, and UH-72A Lakota helicopters; F-16A/B Block 15 aircraft Mid-Life Upgrades; and RGM-84L Harpoon Block II and Evolved Sea Sparrow missiles.
In FY 2019, the United States also authorized the permanent export of over $140.7 million in defense articles to Thailand via the Direct Commercial Sales (DCS) process. The top categories of DCS to Thailand include: Firearms, Aircraft and Associated Equipment, and Ammunition and Ordnance.
The United States and Thailand have the following defense-related agreements: The 1950 Agreement Respecting Military Assistance, The Mutual Security Act of 1951, the Agreement Regarding Grants under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) of 1983, Communications Interoperability and Security Memorandum of Agreement (CISMOA), and the Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreements (ACSA) of 2014.
The U.S.-Thai security relationship extends beyond FMS. Thailand and the United States co-host Cobra Gold, the world’s largest multinational exercise. In 2019, our two nations conducted over 400 military-to-military events, involving the deployment of over 14,000 U.S. troops, 900 aircraft, and nearly 40 ships to Thailand.
Thailand received $2.6 million in International Military Education and Training (IMET) funding for use in FY 2019 and FY 2020, and $2.68 million in FY 2021. IMET provides professional military education and training to military students to increase professionalization, build capacity in key areas, enhance joint interoperability, create a better understanding of the United States, and grow lasting military-to-military relationships. This assistance is key to establishing relationships with future leaders in the Royal Thai Armed Forces. Thailand also received $34.4 million in FY 2020 Foreign Military Financing (FMF) through the Southeast Asia Maritime Security Initiative (SAMSI) and the Advanced Targeting Development Initiative (ATDI) for maritime security and other projects. In 2021, the U.S. provided Thailand $7 million in Countering Chinese Influence Fund (CCIF) for English, technical operational, and professional training.
Thailand has been a significant troop-contributing country to UN peacekeeping missions since 1958. As of Jan. 31, 2021, Thailand had a total UN peacekeeping troop contribution of 301 personnel (Police: 14, UN Military Experts on Mission: 8, Troops: 272, Staff Officers: 4, Military Observers: 8) supporting United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP). In January 2021, Global Peace Operations Initiative funding procured and delivered deployable unit equipment for use at the PKO training center to assist Thailand’s peacekeeping units. At this training center, the UN is implementing a Military Expert on Mission (UNMEOM) course to train military officers for serving in UN peacekeeping operations as military observers, military liaison officers, and military advisors.
According to the Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor, the Kingdom of Thailand is affected by mines and unexploded ordnance as the result of past conflicts on its borders with Cambodia, the Laos, Malaysia, and Myanmar. Since 1993, the Kingdom of Thailand has received $18.9 million in U.S. assistance to support humanitarian mine action and conventional weapons destruction. In 2020, the Department of Defense Humanitarian Demining Research and Development Program, in partnership with the Thailand Mine Action Center (TMAC), continued to evaluate earth-tilling equipment capable of clearing anti-personnel and anti-tank landmines. U.S. Marine Forces Pacific, in cooperation with the TMAC and Royal Thai Armed Forces Engineering Command, provided train-the-trainer instruction in humanitarian mine action, to include first aid and trauma care and reporting procedures mandated by the International Mine Action Standards (IMAS).
For further information, please contact the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, Office of Congressional and Public Affairs at PM-CPA@state.gov, and follow the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs on Twitter, @StateDeptPM.
Source: U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Political-Military Affairs
