Thailand-U.S. policy: A time for divorce?
The Monroe News
Thailand is a nation of 70 million people on Mainland Southeast Asia, on the Chao Phraya river system, in the neighborhood of Vietnam and Burma (Myanmar). The People’s Republic of China (herein China) is to the near north. Thailand became the most significant ally of the United States in Southeast Asia after the Korean War began in 1950; more important, I believe, than South Vietnam.
I believe that special relationship is coming to an end with the rise of China. China is now Thailand’s leading trading partner and military exchanges have grown. Shambaugh, Where Great Powers Meet. To paraphrase Lord Palmerston: nations have neither permanent friends nor enemies, only eternal interests. It is time for Thailand and the United States to move on.