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Charting Thailand’s Maritime Security Policies from 1932 to 2012: A Liberal International Relations Perspective

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Maritime Security in East and Southeast Asia

Abstract

Developing a deeper understanding of Thailand’s maritime security policies necessitates an analytical exploration that will go beyond the conventional. While governmental budgetary, geopolitical and internal security factors will certainly feature heavily in this chapter, we would contend that the dynamics involved in this matter are likewise significantly influenced by other, somewhat latent factors—in particular, the strong domestic undercurrents involving the Thai Armed Forces—that may not be apparent at first glance. Thus, the ensuing analysis, through the use of a liberal international relations lens, will attempt to show that the ebb and flow of Thailand’s maritime security policies are actually intimately linked to the role, challenges and ultimately, the destiny of the Royal Thai Navy. The latter’s existential fight to remain relevant vis-à-vis the Royal Thai Army’s dominance of Thai politics is ultimately played out in the maritime security policies of the nation.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Previously known as the Royal Siamese Navy.

  2. 2.

    Wilfried A. Herrmann, ‘The Royal Thai Navy at the Beginning of the Second Decade of the Twenty-first Century’, in Geoffrey Till and Jane Chan, eds, Naval Modernisation in South-East Asia: Nature, Causes and Consequences, Oxford: Routledge, 2014, pp. 214–15.

  3. 3.

    Ibid.

  4. 4.

    Or as the RTN calls it—an offshore patrol helicopter carrier.

  5. 5.

    J. N. Mak and B. A. Hamzah, ‘Navy Blues’, Far Eastern Economic Review (FEER), 17, 11 (1994), p. 30; James Goldrick and Jack McCaffrie, Navies of South-East Asia: A Comparative Study, Oxford: Routledge, 2013, p. 167.

  6. 6.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, p. 205.

  7. 7.

    Hartmut Manseck, ‘Royal Thai Navy’, Naval Forces (NF), 28, 5 (2007), p. 102.

  8. 8.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 171.

  9. 9.

    For statistical purposes, the IMB-PRC defines ‘piracy and armed robbery’ as: “[a]n act of boarding or attempting to board any ship with the apparent intent to commit theft or any other crime and with the apparent intent or capability to use force in the furtherance of that act”: ICC International Maritime Bureau (ICC-IMB), Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships Annual Report: 1 January –31 December 2009, London: ICC-IMB, 2010, p. 3.

  10. 10.

    Mak and Hamzah, p. 30.

  11. 11.

    Ibid.

  12. 12.

    Ibid.

  13. 13.

    Partnerships in Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia (PEMSEA) Thailand Profile webpage: http://www.pemsea.org/country/thailand.

  14. 14.

    The Nation (Thailand) (TN), 6 October. 2008. Retrieved from http://www.nationmultimedia.com/opinion/Thailand-embarks-on-maritime-security-cooperation-30085175.html (Accessed on 21 January 2015). Please note however that only the aerial patrols were joint. The naval patrols, however, were coordinated ones: Andrew S. Erickson, ‘Maritime Security Cooperation in the South China Sea Region’, in Shicun Wu and Keyuan Zou, eds, Maritime Security in the South China Sea: Regional Implications and International Cooperation, Surrey: Ashgate Publishing Limited, 2009, p. 62.

  15. 15.

    Jessica Romero, ‘Prevention of Maritime Terrorism: The Container Security Initiative’, Chicago Journal of International Law (CJIL), 4 (2003), p. 600.

  16. 16.

    Joshua H. Ho, ‘Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery in Asia: The ReCAAP Information Sharing Centre (ISC)’, Marine Policy (MP), 33, 2 (2009), pp. 432–434.

  17. 17.

    J. N. Mak, ‘Unilateralism and Regionalism: Working Together and Alone in the Malacca Straits’, in Graham Gerard Ong-Webb, ed., Piracy, Maritime Terrorism and Securing the Malacca Straits, Singapore: ISEAS Publishing, 2006, pp. 155–156.

  18. 18.

    Ralf Emmers, ‘The Five Power Defence Arrangements and Defense Diplomacy in Southeast Asia, Asian Security (AS), 8, 3 (2012), p. 277.

  19. 19.

    Wilfried A. Herrmann, ‘Thailand’s Maritime Challenges and Priorities’, in Joshua H. Ho and Sam Bateman, eds, Maritime Challenges and Priorities in Asia: Implications for Regional Security, Oxford: Routledge, 2012, p. 146.

  20. 20.

    TN, 6 October. 2008.

  21. 21.

    Ibid.

  22. 22.

    Take for example, Thailand’s Counter-Terrorism Action Plan that was submitted to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum at the 28th Counter Terrorism Task Force Meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, on the 29th of January 2013 at p. 5. Retrieved from http://www.apec.org/Groups/SOM-Steering-Committee-on-Economic-and-Technical-Cooperation/Working-Groups/~/~/media/Files/Groups/CTAPs/2013/2013_cttf1_017_Thailand.pdf (Accessed on 21 January 2015).

  23. 23.

    Eric Heginbotham, ‘The Fall and Rise of Navies in East Asia: Military Organizations, Domestic Politics, and Grand Strategy’, International Security (IS), 27, 2 (2002), p. 87.

  24. 24.

    Ibid.

  25. 25.

    Ibid.

  26. 26.

    Heginbotham, p. 104.

  27. 27.

    Andrew Moravcsik, ‘Taking Preferences Seriously: A Liberal Theory of International Politics’, International Organization (IO), 51 (1997), p. 516.

  28. 28.

    Wachiraporn Wongnakornsawang, The Royal Thai Navy’s Policy on Anti-Piracy as Part of Naval Diplomacy, Salaya, Nakhon Pathom: Department of Naval Education, Division of Academic Affairs (Thailand), no date. Retrieved from http://58.97.114.34:8881/academic/index.php/site_content/656-2013-12-05-13-59-49/2503-the-royal-thai-navy-s-policy-on-anti-piracy-as-a-part-of-naval-diplomacy.html (Accessed on 21 January 2015).

  29. 29.

    Ibid.

  30. 30.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 159.

  31. 31.

    Wongnakornsawang, op cit.

  32. 32.

    Ibid.

  33. 33.

    Ibid.

  34. 34.

    Ibid.

  35. 35.

    Ibid.

  36. 36.

    Ibid.

  37. 37.

    Suriya Pornsuriya, ‘Thailand’s Perspective’ in Swati Parashar, ed., Maritime Counter-terrorism: A Pan-Asian Perspective, Delhi: Dorling Kindersley India Pvt. Ltd, 2008, p. 91.

  38. 38.

    Paul Chambers, ‘U-Turn to the Past? The Resurgence of the Military in Contemporary Thai Politics’, a paper presented at a public forum on “The Military in Thai Politics: What’s Next?” on 1 September 2009 at the Institute of Security and International Studies, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand, pp. 6–7. The current Secretary-General of the National Security Council of Thailand is Lieutenant General Paradorn Pattanatabut.

  39. 39.

    Pornsuriya, op cit, pp. 91–92.

  40. 40.

    Ibid., p. 92.

  41. 41.

    Andrew T. H. Tan, ‘The Emergence of Naval Power in the Straits of Malacca’, Defence Studies (DS), 12, 1 (2012), p. 118.

  42. 42.

    Ibid.

  43. 43.

    Jack McCaffrie, ‘Submarines for South-east Asia: A Major Step?’, in Geoffrey Till and Jane Chan, eds, Naval Modernisation in South-East Asia: Nature, Causes and Consequences, Oxford: Routledge, 2014, p. 30; The Nation (Thailand), 5 April. 2011. Retrieved from http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Navy-s-costly-sub-dream-needs-a-lot-of-explaining-30152520.html (Accessed on 21 January 2015).

  44. 44.

    Chambers, U-Turn, p. 60. The current Secretary-General of the National Security Council of Thailand is Lieutenant General Paradorn Pattanatabut.

  45. 45.

    Thak Chaloemtiarana, Thailand: The Politics of Despotic Paternalism, Ithaca, Cornell Southeast Asia Program Publications, 2007, p. 185.

  46. 46.

    Panitan Wattanayagorn, ‘Thailand’, in Ravinder Pal Singh, ed., Arms Procurement Decision Making Volume I: China, India, Israel, Japan, South Korea and Thailand, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998, p. 213.

  47. 47.

    It should be noted that while parliament has approval oversight of military budgets (including naval maritime security procurements and operational expenses), Wattanayagorn notes how the military’s (in particular the army’s) dominance in Thai domestic politics has generally led civilian parliamentarians, with some exceptions, to adopt a cautious approach when exercising this power: ibid., pp. 213, 220–223.

  48. 48.

    The Royal Thai Airforce later supplemented these coordinated naval patrols with joint aerial reconnaissance flights under the ‘Eyes in the Sky’ initiative in January 2009.

  49. 49.

    For more information on the ‘Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia’, please access this website: http://www.state.gov/t/pm/rls/fs/2013/219088.htm#.

  50. 50.

    The ‘Combined Maritime Force’ website may be accessed here: http://combinedmaritimeforces.com/.

  51. 51.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, pp. 214–15.

  52. 52.

    Thai Ministry of Transport (Marine Department) website: http://www.md.go.th/IMO_Thailand/ (Accessed on 15 June 2013).

  53. 53.

    Ibid.

  54. 54.

    National News Bureau of Thailand (NNBT), 20 January. 2010. Retrieved from http://202.47.224.92/en/news.php?id=255301200060 (Accessed on 21 January 2015).

  55. 55.

    IMO Press Briefings No. 61, 25 November.2011 Retrieved from http://www.imo.org/MediaCentre/PressBriefings/Pages/61-council.aspx (Accessed on 21 January 2015).

  56. 56.

    IMO Press Briefings No. 53, 29 November. 2013. Retrieved from http://www.imo.org/MediaCentre/PressBriefings/Pages/53-A28-council.aspx (Accessed on 21 January 2015).

  57. 57.

    Royal Thai Navy website: http://www.navy.mi.th/newwww/document/engactivity/eact10.htm.

  58. 58.

    International Maritime Bureau-Regional Piracy Centre (IMB-RPC), Piracy Report 1992, Kuala Lumpur: IMB-RPC, 1993.

  59. 59.

    ICC International Maritime Bureau (ICC-IMB), Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships Annual Report: 1 January –31 December 2004, London: ICC-IMB, 2005, p. 4.

  60. 60.

    It should be noted that the definition of ‘piracy’ used by the IMB-PRC since 1992 has gone through some changes. However, for the purposes of this article, the understanding of the term ‘piracy’ is more akin to the vernacular understanding of maritime depredations that include robbery, rape and serious assault committed at sea.

  61. 61.

    Note however that in May 1995, Vietnamese and Thai patrol boats exchanged fire: Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 168.

  62. 62.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, pp. 214–15.

  63. 63.

    Richard A. Bitzinger, ‘A New Arms Race?: Explaining Recent Southeast Asian Military Acquisitions’, Contemporary Southeast Asia (CSA), 32, 1 (2010), p. 58.

  64. 64.

    Thailand Ministry of Foreign Affairs Press Release, no date. Retrieved from http://www.thaiembassy.sg/press_media/news-highlights/thailand-becomes-state-party-to-the-united-nations-convention-on-the-law (Accessed on 8 November 2014).

  65. 65.

    Tan, Emergence, pp. 118–19; Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 162.

  66. 66.

    Pornsuriya, p. 90.

  67. 67.

    Thitinan Pongsudhirak, ‘Thailand’s Security Outlook: External Trends and Internal Crises’, in Eiichi Katahara, ed., Asia Pacific Countries’ Security Outlook and its Implications for the Defense Sector, Tokyo: The National Institute for Defense Studies, 2010, p. 85.

  68. 68.

    Ibid., p. 92.

  69. 69.

    This treaty was only ratified and acceded to by the Thai Parliament in 2011 despite its government having signed the same in 1982: Thailand Ministry of Foreign Affairs Press Release, no date. Retrieved from http://www.thaiembassy.sg/press_media/news-highlights/thailand-becomes-state-party-to-the-united-nations-convention-on-the-law (Accessed on 8 November 2014).

  70. 70.

    Herrmann, Thailand’s, p. 141.

  71. 71.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, p. 212.

  72. 72.

    Ron Matthews and Alma Lazano, ‘Evaluating Motivations and Performances in ASEAN Naval Acquisition Strategy’, in Geoffrey Till and Jane Chan, eds, Naval Modernisation in South-East Asia: Nature, Causes and Consequences, Oxford: Routledge, 2014, p. 70.

  73. 73.

    Tan, Emergence, p. 118.

  74. 74.

    TN, 5 April. 2011.

  75. 75.

    Ibid.

  76. 76.

    Moravcsik, p. 516.

  77. 77.

    Oona A. Hathaway, ‘Do Human Rights Treaties Make a Difference?’, Yale Law Journal (YLJ), 111 (2002), p. 1952; see also Kenneth Abbott, ‘International Relations Theory, International Law, and the Regime Governing Atrocities in Internal Conflicts’, American Journal of International Law (AJIL), 93 (1999), p. 366.

  78. 78.

    Moravcsik, p. 516.

  79. 79.

    Ibid.

  80. 80.

    Ibid.

  81. 81.

    Anne-Marie Slaughter, ‘International Law and International Relations Theory: A Prospectus’, in Eyal Benvenisti and Moshe Hirsch, eds, The Impact of International Law on International Cooperation, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004, p. 30.

  82. 82.

    Moravcsik, p. 517.

  83. 83.

    Ibid.

  84. 84.

    Anne-Marie Slaughter, ‘International Law in a World of Liberal States’, European Journal of International Law (EJIL), 6 (1995), p. 534; Anne-Marie Slaughter, International Law and International Relations Theory, p. 30.

  85. 85.

    David Schleicher, ‘Liberal International Law Theory and the United Nations Mission in Kosovo: Ideas and Practice’, Tulane Journal of International and Comparative Law (TJICL), 14 (2005), p. 200.

  86. 86.

    Suchit Bunbongkarn, The Military in Thai Politics 1981–86, Singapore: ISEAS, 1987, p. 10.

  87. 87.

    Pavin Chachavalpongpun, ‘The Political Resurgence of the Military’, in Marcus Metzner, ed., Southeast Asia: Conflict and Leadership, Oxford: Routledge, 2011, p. 47.

  88. 88.

    Ibid., p. 45. The most recent coup d’état took place on the 22nd of May 2014, led by General Prayuth Chan-ocha, against a caretaker government.

  89. 89.

    Ibid., p. 47.

  90. 90.

    Ibid.

  91. 91.

    Thak Chaloemtiarana, ‘Distinctions with a Difference: The Despotic Paternalism of Sarit Thanarat and the Demagogic Authoritarianism of Thaksin Shinawatra’, Crossroads: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Southeast Asian Studies (CIJSAS), 19, 1 (2007), p. 60.

  92. 92.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/pm_03.htm.

  93. 93.

    Heginbotham, p. 105.

  94. 94.

    Chachavalpongpun, p. 47.

  95. 95.

    Ibid.

  96. 96.

    Ibid.

  97. 97.

    Ibid.

  98. 98.

    Chaloemtiarana, Thailand, p. 39.

  99. 99.

    Wattanayagorn, pp. 226–27.

  100. 100.

    Chambers, U-Turn, pp. 7–8, 27, 58.

  101. 101.

    Chaloemtiarana, Thailand, p. 39.

  102. 102.

    Ibid.

  103. 103.

    Ibid.

  104. 104.

    Heginbotham, p. 104.

  105. 105.

    Ibid.

  106. 106.

    Federico Ferrara, ‘The Legend of King Prajadhipok: Tall Tales and Stubborn Facts on the Seventh Reign in Siam’, Journal of Southeast Asian Studies (JSAS), 43, 1 (2012), p. 19. Please note that based on official Thai records, Luang Pipubsongkram’s rank on 20 June 1933 was that of Major and not Colonel as reflected in Ferrara’s article above: see Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/pm_03.htm.

  107. 107.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 155.

  108. 108.

    Ibid.

  109. 109.

    Ibid.

  110. 110.

    Ibid.

  111. 111.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, p. 208.

  112. 112.

    Heginbotham, pp. 104–5.

  113. 113.

    Ibid., p. 105.

  114. 114.

    Chaloemtiarana, Thailand, p. 40.

  115. 115.

    This total number of navy appointees assumes that Captain Phraya Wicharnchakrakij was a naval officer because unless there were exceptional circumstances, it would be unlikely that an army captain (which is a very junior commissioned officer rank) would be appointed to cabinet.

  116. 116.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_08.htm.

  117. 117.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_09.htm.

  118. 118.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_10.htm.

  119. 119.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 155.

  120. 120.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, p. 208.

  121. 121.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 156.

  122. 122.

    Ibid.

  123. 123.

    Ibid.

  124. 124.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/pm_04.htm.

  125. 125.

    Ibid.

  126. 126.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_11.htm.

  127. 127.

    Heginbotham, p. 105.

  128. 128.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 156; Frank C. Darling, ‘British and American Influence in Post-War Thailand’, Journal of Southeast Asian History (JSAH), 4, 1 (1963), p. 104.

  129. 129.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, pp. 156–57.

  130. 130.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/pm_08.htm.

  131. 131.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_19.htm; http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_20.htm.

  132. 132.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 157.

  133. 133.

    Ibid.

  134. 134.

    Heginbotham, pp. 105–106.

  135. 135.

    Ibid., p. 106.

  136. 136.

    Chaloemtiarana, Thailand, p. 39.

  137. 137.

    Ibid.

  138. 138.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 157.

  139. 139.

    Ibid.

  140. 140.

    Ibid.

  141. 141.

    Chaloemtiarana, Thailand, p. 40.

  142. 142.

    Chaloemtiarana, Thailand, pp. 40–41.

  143. 143.

    Ibid.

  144. 144.

    Chaloemtiarana, Thailand, p. 41.

  145. 145.

    Ibid.

  146. 146.

    Ibid.

  147. 147.

    Ibid.

  148. 148.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 158.

  149. 149.

    Ibid.

  150. 150.

    Chaloemtiarana, Thailand, p. 42.

  151. 151.

    Ibid.

  152. 152.

    Ibid.

  153. 153.

    Ibid.

  154. 154.

    Ibid.

  155. 155.

    Ibid.

  156. 156.

    Ibid.

  157. 157.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 158.

  158. 158.

    Ibid.

  159. 159.

    TN, 5 April. 2011.

  160. 160.

    Chaloemtiarana, Thailand, p. 42.

  161. 161.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 159.

  162. 162.

    Chaloemtiarana, Thailand, p. 42.

  163. 163.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 158.

  164. 164.

    Heginbotham, p. 106.

  165. 165.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 159.

  166. 166.

    Ibid.

  167. 167.

    Ibid.

  168. 168.

    Ibid.

  169. 169.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, pp. 159–60.

  170. 170.

    Ibid., p. 160.

  171. 171.

    Ibid.

  172. 172.

    Ibid.

  173. 173.

    Ibid.

  174. 174.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, p. 210.

  175. 175.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 161.

  176. 176.

    Ibid., p. 162.

  177. 177.

    Ibid., p. 161.

  178. 178.

    Ibid., p. 162.

  179. 179.

    Ibid., p. 161.

  180. 180.

    Ibid.

  181. 181.

    Ibid.

  182. 182.

    Ibid.

  183. 183.

    Albert D. Moscotti, ‘Current Burmese and Southeast Asian Relations’, Southeast Asian Affairs (SAA), (1978), p. 89.

  184. 184.

    Ibid.

  185. 185.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 162.

  186. 186.

    Moscotti, p. 89.

  187. 187.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 162.

  188. 188.

    Heginbotham, p. 106.

  189. 189.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_40.htm.

  190. 190.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_41.htm. In a subsequent cabinet reshuffle on the 11th of February 1980, RTN officers still only held two deputy ministerial appointments.

  191. 191.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_33.htm.

  192. 192.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_34.htm. It should be noted that the official Thai government records do not indicate that Admiral Sangad Chaloryu was appointed by Prime Minister Sanya to be his Defence Minister, even though this is cited as such in Heginbotham’s work: Heginbotham, p. 107.

  193. 193.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_36.htm.

  194. 194.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_38.htm.

  195. 195.

    Ibid.

  196. 196.

    Ibid.

  197. 197.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_35.htm.

  198. 198.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_37.htm.

  199. 199.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_39.htm.

  200. 200.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/pm_14.htm.

  201. 201.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, p. 210.

  202. 202.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_36.htm.

  203. 203.

    Nigel Thalakada, Unipolarity and the Evolution of America’s Cold War Alliances, Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan, 2012, p. 132.

  204. 204.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 163.

  205. 205.

    Leszek Buszynski, Soviet Foreign Policy and Southeast Asia, London: Croom Helm, 1986, p. 234.

  206. 206.

    Ibid.; Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 163.

  207. 207.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 163.

  208. 208.

    Buszynski, Soviet, p. 234.

  209. 209.

    James A. Gregor, In the Shadow of Giants: the Major Powers and the Security of Southeast Asia, Stanford: Hoover Institution Press, 1989, p. 52.

  210. 210.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 162.

  211. 211.

    Ibid.

  212. 212.

    Ibid.

  213. 213.

    Chart Navavichit, (2002). ‘Thailand’s Maritime Strategy in the Twenty First Century’, in Jurgen Schwarz and Wilfried A. Herrman and Hanns-Frank Seller, eds, Maritime Strategies in Asia, Bangkok: White Lotus Press, 2002, p. 411.

  214. 214.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 163.

  215. 215.

    Roald Gjelsten, ‘The Role of Naval Forces in Northern Waters at the Beginning of a New Century’ in Rolf Hobson and Tom Kristiansen, eds, Navies in Northern Waters: 1721–2000, London, Frank Cass, 2004, p. 303, en. 5.

  216. 216.

    You Ji, ‘A Blue Water Navy: “Does it Matter?’, in David S. G. Goodman and Gerald Segal, eds, China Rising: Nationalism and Interdependence, London: Routledge, 1997, p. 77.

  217. 217.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 163.

  218. 218.

    Heginbotham, p. 108. Note however, General Prem’s involvement in the military coup against Prime Minister Thaksin in 2006.

  219. 219.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/pm_16.htm.

  220. 220.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_42.htm; http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_43.htm; http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_44.htm.

  221. 221.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_42.htm; http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_43.htm; http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_44.htm.

  222. 222.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 165.

  223. 223.

    Ibid., pp. 164–66.

  224. 224.

    McCaffrie, p. 30.

  225. 225.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 164.

  226. 226.

    Justus M. van der Kroef, The Lives of SEATO, Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 1976, p. 1. This was quite fitting given that SEATO’s first Secretary General was another Thai i.e. Prime Minister Pote Sarasin. Note however, that this treaty may still be technically binding on some of the signatories: Claire Taylor and Tom Rutherford, Military Balance in South East Asia, London: House of Commons Library, 2011, p. 14.

  227. 227.

    Chien-pen Chung, ‘Southeast Asia-China Relations: Dialectics of “Hedging” and “Counter-Hedging”’, Southeast Asian Affairs (SAA), 2004, p. 36.

  228. 228.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 164.

  229. 229.

    Ibid., p. 165.

  230. 230.

    Wongnakornsawang, http://58.97.114.34:8881/academic/index.php/site_content/656-2013-12-05-13-59-49/2503-the-royal-thai-navy-s-policy-on-anti-piracy-as-a-part-of-naval-diplomacy.html.

  231. 231.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 166.

  232. 232.

    Ibid.

  233. 233.

    Tim Huxley, ‘The ASEAN States’ Defence Policies: Influences and Outcomes’, in Colin McInnes and Mark G. Rolls, eds, Post-Cold War Security Issues in the Asia-Pacific Region, Essex, England: Frank Cass & Co. Ltd., 1994, p. 149.

  234. 234.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, pp. 166–7.

  235. 235.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/pm_16.htm.

  236. 236.

    Prime Minister, General Chatichai Choonhavan, who, notwithstanding his military rank, was in reality a career diplomat and businessman: Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/pm_17.htm.

  237. 237.

    Khatharya Um, ‘Thailand and the Dynamics of Economic and Security Complex in Mainland Southeast Asia’, Contemporary Southeast Asia (CSA), 13, 3 (1991), p. 264.

  238. 238.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, p. 218. It should be noted that such a move would of course, set the RTN on a collision course with the Marine Police (under the Ministry of the Interior).

  239. 239.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 167. This squadron was later officially established in 1992: see Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, p. 218.

  240. 240.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, p. 218.

  241. 241.

    Huxley, p. 149.

  242. 242.

    Ibid.

  243. 243.

    Wattanayagorn, p. 227; Goldrick and McCaffrie, pp. 162, 165, 172.

  244. 244.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 166. Goldrick and McCaffrie highlighted that the RTN was nevertheless acutely aware of the quality control issues that plagued these Chinese-built vessels.

  245. 245.

    Ibid., p. 167.

  246. 246.

    Duncan McCargo, ‘Thailand’s Democracy: The Long Vacation’, Politics (P), 12, 2 (1992), pp. 3–8.

  247. 247.

    Paul Chambers, Unruly Boots: Military Power and Security Sector Reform Efforts in Thailand, Frankfurt: Peace Research Institute Frankfurt, 2013, p. 15.

  248. 248.

    Surin Maisrikrod, Thailand’s Two General Elections in 1992: Democracy Sustained, Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 1992, p. vii. Prime Minister General Chatichai had not only angered the army but had also interfered with the way senior bureaucrats were running the civil services. There were also rumours that he was about to sack General Sunthorn Kongsomphong from his position of Supreme Commander: Surin Maisrikrod, ‘The Making of Thai Democracy: A Study of Political Alliances among the State, the Capitalists, and the Middle Class’, in Anek Laothamatas, ed., Democratization in Southeast and East Asia, Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 1997, p. 162. This animosity had been compounded by the Prime Minister’s close association with an outspoken critic of the army, Chalerm Yubamrung, as well as his appointment of General Arthit Kamlang-ek as Deputy Minister of Defense, a rival of both General Sunthorn and General Suchinda.

  249. 249.

    Suchit Bunbongkarn, ‘Thailand in 1991: Coping with Military Guardianship’, Asian Survey (AS), 32, 2 (1991), p. 132.

  250. 250.

    Maisrikrod, Thailand’s Two General Elections, p. 1.

  251. 251.

    Ibid.

  252. 252.

    James P. LoGerfo, ‘Beyond Bangkok: The Provincial Middle Class in the 1992 Protests’, in Ruther Thomas McVey, ed., Money and Power in Provincial Thailand, Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2000, p. 228.

  253. 253.

    Bunbongkarn, Thailand in 1991, p. 134.

  254. 254.

    Ibid., pp. 133–134.

  255. 255.

    Royal Thai Navy website: http://www.navy.mi.th/newwww/document/engactivity/eact10.htm.

  256. 256.

    Maisrikrod, Thailand’s Two General Elections, p. 1.

  257. 257.

    Ibid.

  258. 258.

    Ibid., p. 2.

  259. 259.

    Surin Maisrikrod, ‘Thailand 1992: Repression and Return of Democracy’, Southeast Asian Affairs (SAA), (1993), p. 335.

  260. 260.

    Ibid., pp. 335–336.

  261. 261.

    Heginbotham, p. 109.

  262. 262.

    Ibid.

  263. 263.

    Rodney Tasker, ‘Thailand: Silent Service’, Far Eastern Economic Review (FEER), 156, 42 (1993), p. 30.

  264. 264.

    Leszek Buszynski, ‘Thailand’s Foreign Policy: Management of a Regional Vision’, Asian Survey (AS), 34, 8 (1994), p. 725.

  265. 265.

    Ibid.

  266. 266.

    Ibid.

  267. 267.

    Wattanayagorn, p. 211.

  268. 268.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 169, fn.98.

  269. 269.

    Ibid., p. 169.

  270. 270.

    Frank C. Jones, ‘Naval Trends in ASEAN: Is there a New Arms Race?’ Master’s Thesis, 1995, USN Naval Postgraduate School, 1995, pp. 73–74.

  271. 271.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 50.

  272. 272.

    Robert O. Keohane and Joseph S. Nye, ‘Introduction: The End of the Cold War in Europe’, in Robert O. Keohane, Joseph S. Nye and Stanley Hoffmann, eds, After the Cold War: International Institutions and State Strategies in Europe, 1989–1991, Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1993, p. 1.

  273. 273.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 169.

  274. 274.

    Ibid.

  275. 275.

    Ibid.

  276. 276.

    Ibid., p. 168.

  277. 277.

    Phuket Gazette (PG) (Thailand), October 1. 2014. Retrieved from http://phuketgazette.net/phuket-news/Phuket-Navy-base-swaps-top-brass/36058#ad-image-0 (Accessed on 22 January 2015).

  278. 278.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 169.

  279. 279.

    Ibid., p. 168.

  280. 280.

    Ibid., p. 169.

  281. 281.

    Ibid.

  282. 282.

    Suchit Bunbongkarn, ‘Thailand in 1995: The More Things Change, the More They Remain the Same’, Southeast Asian Affairs (SAA), 1996, p. 365.

  283. 283.

    Duncan McCargo, Media and Politics in Pacific Asia, London: RoutledgeCurson, 2003, p. 130.

  284. 284.

    Duncan McCargo, ‘The International Media and the Domestic Political Coverage of the Thai Press’, Modern Asian Studies (MAS), 33, 3 (1999), pp. 551–579.

  285. 285.

    TN, 5 April. 2011; Bangkok Post (BP) (Thailand), 20 November. 2014. Retrieved from http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general/444449/navy-renews-push-for-sub-plan (Accessed on 22 January 2015).

  286. 286.

    Wattanayagorn, p. 220.

  287. 287.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 170.

  288. 288.

    Ibid.

  289. 289.

    Ibid.

  290. 290.

    The Nation (TN) (Thailand), 23 November. 2014. Retrieved from http://www.nationmultimedia.com/opinion/Navys-submarine-acquisition-plan-can-wait-30248361.html (Accessed on 22 January 2015).

  291. 291.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_54.htm.

  292. 292.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, p. 211.

  293. 293.

    Paul Chambers, ‘Where Agency Meets Structure: Understanding Civil-Military Relations in Contemporary Thailand’, Asian Journal of Political Science (AJPS), 19, 3 (2011), p. 297.

  294. 294.

    Ibid.

  295. 295.

    Duncan McCargo and Ukrist Pathmanand, The Thaksinization of Thailand. Copenhagen: NIAS Press, 2005, p. 150. This was a network that linked the military to “business groups, political parties, senior civil servants and powerful newspapers in a complex web…”: ibid., p. 134.

  296. 296.

    Ibid., p. 130.

  297. 297.

    For example, family members and friends, as well as fellow graduates of Class 10 of the Armed Forces Academies Preparatory School: ibid., pp. 135–151.

  298. 298.

    Ibid.

  299. 299.

    To a certain extent, this argument is supported by the fact that the army included the navy in its 2006 coup against Prime Minister Thaksin: Michael J. Montesano, ‘Thailand: A Reckoning with History Begins’, Southeast Asian Affairs (SAA), (2007), p. 322.

  300. 300.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, p. 212.

  301. 301.

    John F. Bradford, ‘The Growing Prospects for Maritime Security Cooperation in Southeast Asia’, Naval War College Review (NWCR), 58, 3 (2005), p. 67.

  302. 302.

    BBC News (BBCN), 24 April. 2000. Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/724336.stm (Accessed on 22 January 2015); BBC News, 30 December. 2000. Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/719623.stm (Accessed on 22 January 2015).

  303. 303.

    Bradford, p. 67.

  304. 304.

    The Jakarta Post (TJP) (Indonesia), 13 October. 2014. Retrieved from http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/10/13/twelve-years-bali-bombing-continues-haunt-victims.html#sthash.Jz46kTCA.dpuf (Accessed on 22 January 2015).

  305. 305.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, p. 212.

  306. 306.

    Ann Marie Murphy, ‘United States Relations with Southeast Asia: The Legacy of Policy Changes’, in Ann Marie Murphy and Bridget Welsh, eds, Legacy of Engagement in Southeast Asia, Singapore: ISEAS Publications, 2008, pp. 270–271.

  307. 307.

    Romero, p. 600.

  308. 308.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, p. 212.

  309. 309.

    ABC News (ABCN) (Australia), 15 August. 2003. Retrieved from http://www.abc.net.au/news/2003-08-15/hambali-arrested-in-thailand-reports/1464988 (Accessed on 22 January 2015).

  310. 310.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 172.

  311. 311.

    Ibid.

  312. 312.

    McCargo and Ukrist Pathmanand, p. 151.

  313. 313.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, p. 212.

  314. 314.

    USA Today (USAT), 20 October. 2003. Retrieved from http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/washington/2003-10-19-us-apec_x.htm (Accessed on 22 January 2015).

  315. 315.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 171.

  316. 316.

    Chambers, Where Agency, p. 297.

  317. 317.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 173.

  318. 318.

    Matthews and Lazano, p. 70.

  319. 319.

    Carolin Liss, Oceans of Crime: Maritime Piracy and Transnational Security in Southeast Asia and Bangladesh, Singapore: ISEAS Publishing, 2011, p. 295.

  320. 320.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 172.

  321. 321.

    Ibid., p. 171.

  322. 322.

    Ibid., p. 173.

  323. 323.

    Pornsuriya, p. 93.

  324. 324.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 172.

  325. 325.

    Chulacheeb Chinwanno, ‘Rising China and Thailand’s Policy of Strategic Engagement’, in Jun Tsunekawa, ed., The Rise of China: Responses from Southeast Asia and Japan, Tokyo: The National Institute for Defense Studies, 2009, p. 103.

  326. 326.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 172.

  327. 327.

    Prime Minister Thaksin was also heavily involved in fighting other battles, including his ‘wars’ against poverty in the rural North and North-East (2001), drugs (2003), and the Muslim insurgents in the Deep South (2004). While these struggles would gain him considerable success in the elections, ironically, these conflicts were also the ‘seeds’ of his eventual political demise.

  328. 328.

    Herrmann, Thailand’s, p. 153.

  329. 329.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 172.

  330. 330.

    Note however that the RTN was not able to acquire any funds to take part in year-round tri-partite coordinated naval patrols of the Malacca and Singapore straits—an initiative that had been established by Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore in 2004.

  331. 331.

    Herrmann, Thailand’s, pp. 144–45.

  332. 332.

    Takeshi Kohno, ‘Japanese Civilian Cooperation in Maritime Security since 1999’, in Sam Bateman and Joshua Ho, eds, Southeast Asia and the Rise of Chinese and Indian Naval Power: Between Rising Naval Powers, Oxford: Routledge, 2010, p. 178.

  333. 333.

    Wongnakornsawang, http://58.97.114.34:8881/academic/index.php/site_content/656-2013-12-05-13-59-49/2503-the-royal-thai-navy-s-policy-on-anti-piracy-as-a-part-of-naval-diplomacy.html.

  334. 334.

    Reuters (R), 19 May. 2006. Retrieved from http://t2.thai360.com/index.php?/topic/30549-thais-rebuff-joint-patrols/ (Accessed on 22 January 2015).

  335. 335.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 173.

  336. 336.

    Montesano, p. 322.

  337. 337.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 173.

  338. 338.

    Montesano, p. 322.

  339. 339.

    Chaloemtiarana, Distinctions, p. 69.

  340. 340.

    Ukrist Pathmanand, ‘A Different Coup D’etat?’ Journal of Contemporary Asia (JCA), 38,1 (2008), p. 126.

  341. 341.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, p. 173.

  342. 342.

    Chambers, Where Agency, p. 298.

  343. 343.

    National News Bureau of Thailand (NNBT), 21 November. 2006. Retrieved from http://202.47.224.92/en/news.php?id=254911210010 (Accessed on 22 January 2015).

  344. 344.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_56.htm.

  345. 345.

    Paul W. Chambers, ‘In the Shadow of the Soldier’s Boot: Assessing Civil-Military Relations in Thailand’, in Marc Askew, ed., Legitimacy Crisis in Thailand, Chiang Mai: Silkworm Books and King Prajadhipok’s Institute, 2010, p. 201.

  346. 346.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/cab_57.htm.

  347. 347.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/history58.htm.

  348. 348.

    Chambers, In the Shadow, p. 202.

  349. 349.

    Wongnakornsawang, http://58.97.114.34:8881/academic/index.php/site_content/656-2013-12-05-13-59-49/2503-the-royal-thai-navy-s-policy-on-anti-piracy-as-a-part-of-naval-diplomacy.html.

  350. 350.

    As discussed earlier, Supreme Commander General Ruengroj Mahasaranond had rejected this proposal outright in May 2006.

  351. 351.

    Wongnakornsawang, http://58.97.114.34:8881/academic/index.php/site_content/656-2013-12-05-13-59-49/2503-the-royal-thai-navy-s-policy-on-anti-piracy-as-a-part-of-naval-diplomacy.html.

  352. 352.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/history.htm.

  353. 353.

    Chambers, In the Shadow, p. 202.

  354. 354.

    Ibid.

  355. 355.

    Tan, Emergence, p. 119.

  356. 356.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, pp. 214–215.

  357. 357.

    The ‘Combined Maritime Force’ website may be accessed here: http://combinedmaritimeforces.com/.

  358. 358.

    Wongnakornsawang, http://58.97.114.34:8881/academic/index.php/site_content/656-2013-12-05-13-59-49/2503-the-royal-thai-navy-s-policy-on-anti-piracy-as-a-part-of-naval-diplomacy.html.

  359. 359.

    Goldrick and McCaffrie, pp. 174, 176.

  360. 360.

    Tan, Emergence, p. 119.

  361. 361.

    Phuket News (PN) (Thailand), 14 October. 2013. Retrieved from http://www.thephuketnews.com/submarine-base-nears-completion-royal-thai-navy-now-needs-a-fleet-42341.php (Accessed on 22 January 2015).

  362. 362.

    Thai Government Cabinet website: http://www.cabinet.thaigov.go.th/eng/history_60.htm.

  363. 363.

    Tan, Emergence, p. 119.

  364. 364.

    The Nation (TN) (Thailand), 28 September. 2011. Retrieved from http://www.nationmultimedia.com/politics/PMs-submarine-mix-up-30166310.html (Accessed on 22 January 2015).

  365. 365.

    Ibid.

  366. 366.

    The Nation (TN) (Thailand), 30 September. 2011. Retrieved from http://www.nationmultimedia.com/opinion/Leaner-and-more-efficient-armed-forces-are-needed-30166477.html (Accessed on 22 January 2015).

  367. 367.

    Tan, Emergence, p. 119.

  368. 368.

    Asian Correspondent (AS), 14 March. 2012. Retrieved from http://asiancorrespondent.com/78065/thai-navys-250m-submarine-plan-scuppered/ (Accessed on 23 January 2015).

  369. 369.

    Herrmann, The Royal Thai Navy, pp. 214–215.

  370. 370.

    AS, 14 March. 2012.

  371. 371.

    Ibid.

  372. 372.

    The Phuket News (TPK) (Thailand), 9 July. 2014. Retrieved from http://www.thephuketnews.com/phuket-thai-commander-welcomes-new-submarine-centre-despite-lack-of-subs-47278.php (Accessed on 22 January 2015).

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  1. College of Arts, Society and Education, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, Australia

    Mark David Chong & Surin Maisrikrod

  2. Walailak University, Thai Buri, Tha Sala District, Thailand

    Surin Maisrikrod

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  1. New Zealand Asia Institute, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand

    Nicholas Tarling

  2. New Zealand Asia Institute, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand

    Xin Chen

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Chong, M.D., Maisrikrod, S. (2017). Charting Thailand’s Maritime Security Policies from 1932 to 2012: A Liberal International Relations Perspective. In: Tarling, N., Chen, X. (eds) Maritime Security in East and Southeast Asia. Palgrave, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-2588-4_8

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