Author: Daniel Fineman Publisher: University of Hawaii Press ISBN: 9780824818180 Category : Political Science Languages : en Pages : 382
Book Description
The development of the Thai-American alliance from 1947 to 1958 dramatically transformed both countries' involvement in Southeast Asia. Bounded by two important political events in Thailand, an army coup in 1947 and the military's assumption of complete control of government in 1958, the period witnessed both the entrenchment of authoritarian military government in Thailand and a revolution in U.S.-Thai relations. During these years the modern Thai political system emerged, and the United States established its interest and influence in mainland Southeast Asian affairs. The developments of the period made possible American's later, more extensive, involvement in Indochina. A Special Relationship provides the most comprehensive analysis of this critical founding period of the Thai-American alliance. It reveals surprising new information on joint covert operations in Indochina, American support for suppression of government opponents, and CIA involvement in Thai domestic politics.
Author: Gregory Raymond Publisher: Routledge ISBN: 0429626991 Category : Political Science Languages : en Pages : 227
Book Description
Thailand, a long-standing defence partner of the United States and ASEAN’s second largest economy, occupies a geostrategically important position as a land bridge between China and maritime Southeast Asia. This book, based on extensive original research, explores the current state of US-Thai relations, paying particular attention to how the United States is perceived by a wide range of people in the Thai defence establishment and highlighting the importance of historical memory. The book outlines how the US-Thai relationship has been complicated and at times turbulent, discusses how Thailand is deeply embedded in multi-faceted relationships with many Asian states, not just China, and examines how far the United States is blind to the complexities of Asian international relations by focusing too much on China. The book concludes by assessing how US-Thai relations are likely to develop going forward. Additionally, the work contributes to alliance theory by showing how domestic politics shapes memory, which in turn affects perceptions of other states.
Author: Ian Storey Publisher: ISBN: 9789814695701 Category : China Languages : en Pages : 36
Book Description
Since the Thai military seized power in May 2014, Thailand's relations with the United States have significantly deteriorated, while the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) has quickly emerged as the Kingdom's closest Great Power partner. U.S.-Thai defence cooperation has been the main casualty of the coup, and represents a setback for the Obama administration's pivot or rebalance towards Asia, the success of which depends in large part on strengthening bilateral alliances and increasing America's presence in Asia. Even before the coup, the U.S.-Thai alliance was facing difficulties. Since Washington announced the pivot in 2011, neither civilian nor military leaders in Thailand have evinced genuine support for the strategy. Many Thais consider the pivot to be aimed at containing China, and that Thailand's association with the strategy would be detrimental to the country's positive relations with the PRC. Thailand does not perceive the PRC as a source of strategic instability; to the contrary, Thais overwhelmingly view China as a valuable economic and security partner. In contrast to U.S.-Thai relations, Sino-Thai relations have blossomed since the putsch. Beijing's hands off approach to Thailand's domestic political situation is much appreciated by the junta, and has allowed the two sides to focus on strengthening economic ties and defence cooperation. The United States has repeatedly called on the junta to hold new elections, and emphasized that relations cannot return to normal until civilian rule is restored. However, a return to democracy in Thailand is not in prospect any time soon. The rejection of the draft constitution in September 2015 means that the armed forces will retain political power until at least 2017 and conceivably beyond. As a result, U.S.-Thai relations will continue to experience strain while Sino-Thai cooperation strengthens.
Author: N Ganesan Publisher: Institute of Southeast Asian ISBN: 9814279579 Category : Political Science Languages : en Pages : 372
Book Description
"The central theme of this book is the utility of bilateralism and multilateralism in Southeast Asia international relations. The intention was to examine a sufficient number of empirical cases in the Southeast Asian region since the mid-1970's so as to establish a pattern of interactions informing a wider audience of interactions unique to the region. Through these case studies, we seek to identify how this pattern of interaction compares with similar experiences elsewhere vis-a-vis the theoretical underpinnings of multilateralism and bilateralism. Consequently, this book also examines the theoretical drift in international relations literature at the broadest level and the overall drift of Southeast Asian international relations between the nations themselves and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)."--P. xv.
Author: Kenny N. Cade Publisher: Nova Science Publishers ISBN: 9781631175961 Category : Human rights Languages : en Pages : 0
Book Description
U.S.-Thailand relations are of interest to Congress because of Thailand's status as a long-time military ally and a significant trade and economic partner. For many years, Thailand was also seen as a model of stable democracy in Southeast Asia, although this image, along with U.S. relations, have been complicated by deep political and economic instability in the wake of a September 2006 coup that displaced Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, a popular but divisive figure who remains a flashpoint for many divisions within Thailand. This book provides a background of Thailand and U.S. relations. It also discusses Thailand's 2012 international religious freedom report along with a 2013 investment climate statement.
Author: Richard A. Ruth Publisher: University of Hawaii Press ISBN: 0824860853 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 289
Book Description
In Buddha’s Company explores a previously neglected aspect of the Vietnam War: the experiences of the Thai troops who served there and the attitudes and beliefs that motivated them to volunteer. Thailand sent nearly 40,000 volunteer soldiers to South Vietnam to serve alongside the Free World Forces in the conflict, but unlike the other foreign participants, the Thais came armed with historical and cultural knowledge of the region. Blending the methodologies of cultural and military history, Richard Ruth examines the individual experiences of Thai volunteers in their wartime encounters with American allies, South Vietnamese civilians, and Viet Cong enemies. Ruth shows how the Thais were transformed by living amongst the modern goods and war machinery of the Americans and by traversing the jungles and plantations haunted by indigenous spirits. At the same time, Ruth argues, Thailand’s ruling institutions used the image of volunteers to advance their respective agendas, especially those related to anticommunist authoritarianism. Drawing on numerous interviews with Thai veterans and archival material from Thailand and the United States, Ruth focuses on the cultural exchanges that occurred between Thai troops and their allies and enemies, presenting a Southeast Asian view of a conflict that has traditionally been studied as a Cold War event dominated by an American political agenda. The resulting study considers such diverse topics as comparative Buddhisms, alternative modernities, consumerism, celebrity, official memories vs. personal recollections, and the value of local knowledge in foreign wars. The war’s effects within Thailand itself are closely considered, demonstrating that the war against communism in Vietnam, as articulated by Thai leaders, was a popular cause among nearly all segments of the population. Furthermore, Ruth challenges previous assertions that Thailand’s forces were merely "America’s mercenaries" by presenting the multiple, overlapping motivations for volunteering offered by the soldiers themselves. In Buddha’s Company makes clear that many Thais sought direct involvement in the Vietnam War and that their participation had profound and lasting effects on the country’s political and military institutions, royal affairs, popular culture, and international relations. As one of only a handful of academic histories of Thailand in the 1960s, it provides a crucial link between the keystone studies of the Phibun-Sarit years (1946–1963) and those examining the turbulent 1970s.
Author: Kenny N. Cade Publisher: ISBN: 9781631175978 Category : Electronic books Languages : en Pages : 168
Book Description
U.S.-Thailand relations are of interest to Congress because of Thailand's status as a long-time military ally and a significant trade and economic partner. For many years, Thailand was also seen as a model of stable democracy in Southeast Asia, although this image, along with U.S. relations, have been complicated by deep political and economic instability in the wake of a September 2006 coup that displaced Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, a popular but divisive figure who remains a flashpoint for many divisions within Thailand. This book provides a background of Thailand and U.S. relations.
Author: Daniel Fineman
Author: Karl D. Jackson
Author: Gregory Raymond
Author: Ian Storey
Author: N Ganesan
Author: Kenny N. Cade
Author: United States. Department of State
Author: Richard A. Ruth
Author: Clark D. Neher
Author: Kenny N. Cade