Thailand, U.S. resume Cobra Gold military exercise at full scale

Posted to Nikkei Asia (Feb 28, 2023): Thailand, U.S. resume Cobra Gold military exercise at full scale (By FRANCESCA REGALADO)

America sends 6,000-strong contingent in a show of regional commitment

Soldiers take part in an amphibious assault exercise during the 2020 Cobra Gold multilateral military exercises in Thailand's Chonburi province. © Reuters

BANGKOK -- The U.S. and Thailand opened the annual Cobra Gold military exercise in full scale on Tuesday, with the largest U.S. contingent in a decade training with forces from 30 countries to enhance regional interoperability.

This year's Cobra Gold will be the first to train personnel on space disasters that could compromise satellite communication systems. More than 6,000 U.S. personnel will participate, including 3,800 land personnel, and Thailand will have 3,000 troops in attendance.

The longest-running military exercise in Southeast Asia, it has served as an opportunity for the U.S., Thailand and a rotating cast of participating countries to share battlefield maneuvers and tactics and train in new technology and equipment since 1982.

The main exercise involves hundreds of troops from Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore and South Korea. Ten other countries -- Bangladesh, Brunei, Canada, Fiji, France, Mongolia, Nepal, New Zealand, the Philippines and the U.K. -- will participate in workshops for multinational operational planning. Another 10 observers include Cambodia, Germany and Vietnam. Myanmar has not participated since the military power grab in 2021.

"Through Cobra Gold, we demonstrate our resolve to respond together to preserve a free and open Indo-Pacific so that all nations can maintain peace, stability and prosperity," said Adm. John Aquilino, commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, at the opening ceremony on Tuesday.

Aquilino pointed to the American and Thai response to the recent earthquake in Turkey and other natural disasters as a result of training at Cobra Gold.

China, India and Australia will take part in humanitarian and disaster relief exercises. China's Defense Ministry said it had dispatched an army contingent from the People's Liberation Army Southern Theater Command, which oversees the South China Sea and land borders with Southeast Asia.

"What makes Cobra Gold special is that it exemplifies the fabric of our friendship, a genuine friendship that we have woven together over the last 200 years," said U.S. Ambassador to Thailand Robert Godec in a joint news conference with Gen. Thitichai Thienthong, chief of staff of the Royal Thai Armed Forces, earlier this month.

The COVID-19 pandemic halted the full re-scaling of Cobra Gold for two years, following a chill in bilateral relations after the Thai military staged a coup in 2014.

Only 3,460 personnel from the seven main countries participated last year due to the spread of the omicron variant. Activities were limited because exercises involving civilians, such as evacuation drills and community interactions, were canceled. Humanitarian planning exercises were held virtually.

All events are due to return this year, along with amphibious landings.

"These repetitions, year after year, build shared understanding and muscle memory needed to respond together against disasters in the real world, saving time in our collective response and thus saving lives," Col. Kurtis A. Leffler, the U.S. defense attache to Thailand, said at the news conference.

Top brass were on hand when Gen. Thitichai officially opened Cobra Gold on Tuesday in Rayong province. The eastern seaboard provinces of Chanthaburi, Sa Kaeo and Rayong, as well as Lopburi to the north of Bangkok, will host the exercises.

Cobra Gold comprises three main parts: a staff exercise that includes senior personnel training; humanitarian and disaster relief exercises; and field training. Previous iterations have trained forces to build defensive obstacles, dispose of land mines and survive in Southeast Asian jungles.

The large U.S. contingent comes as the Indo-Pacific region seeks tangible commitments from Washington not only in defense, but also in trade and investment. Relations between the U.S. and Thailand, treaty allies since 1833, have been on the mend although former Thai military chiefs who led the 2014 coup remain at the top of government.

The U.S. suspended military aid to Thailand after the coup, including grants and loans to purchase U.S. defense equipment and finance military training. That same year, China began participating in humanitarian exercises. Thailand was the third-largest recipient of Chinese arms exports from 2017 to 2021, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

Foreign military sales from the U.S. to Thailand amounted to $2.85 billion as of last year. The Royal Thai Air Force is waiting for the U.S. Congress to approve a $413 million sale of F-35 fighter jets as its fleet of F-16 aircraft nears decommissioning.

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