US embassy cable - 05BANGKOK3129

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 BANGKOK 003129 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EAP, P, EAP/BCLTV. 
HQ PACOM FOR FPA HUSO 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/04/2015 
TAGS: OVIP, PGOV, MASS, MARR, TH, IRAQ, POL/MIL, Southern Thailand, BURMA 
SUBJECT: PACOM MEETING WITH PM THAKSIN:  IRAQ, F-16, CHINA, 
BURMA, VIOLENCE IN THE SOUTH 
 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Ralph L. Boyce, Reason 1.4 (a and d) 
 
1.  (C)  Summary:  In a May 4 meeting with visiting PACOM 
Commander ADM William Fallon, PM Thaksin Shinawatra did not 
directly address a U.S. request for Thailand to send staff 
officers to the multinational headquarters in Iraq, but did 
suggest that Thailand might be able to provide additional 
support to Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) so long as that 
assistance could be labeled "humanitarian."  Regarding 
Lockheed Martin's efforts to sell F-16 aircraft to Thailand, 
Thaksin recounted his efforts to have Sweden and Russia agree 
to enter into a barter arrangement involving Thai chicken in 
exchange for Saab Gripen or Sukhoi SU-30 fighters.  He made 
it clear that he was inclined toward Russia's or Sweden's 
offer of a barter -- not counter trade -- deal, or "birds for 
birds."  Thaksin expressed gratitude for U.S. assistance 
during the tsunami crisis and was very supportive of the 
Cobra Gold exercise program.  The Prime Minister was pleased 
that Iraq had chosen a new Cabinet and said that his recent 
trip to Jordan had convinced him that PM Adnan Badran was 
serious about fostering good governance in Iraq.  Noting 
Thailand's good relations with both Tokyo and Beijing, 
Thaksin was concerned about the Sino-Japanese rift and 
pledged to do what he could to reconcile the two sides.  He 
was pleased about Taiwan KMT leader Lien Chan's recent visit 
to Beijing, and was optimistic that tensions over the Taiwan 
Strait would ease.  Thaksin said that Thailand was committed 
to promoting democratization and reconciliation among various 
factions in Burma.  He seemed sure that Burma would 
eventually agree to give up its upcoming chair of ASEAN but 
suggested Rangoon needed a way to do so without appearing to 
cave in to outside pressure.  Thaksin explained that his 
Government's problems in the southern part of the country 
were a domestic matter but expressed concern that teachers in 
Koranic schools had been distorting Islamic teachings to 
promote unrest.  In dealing with the violence in the South, 
Thaksin was disappointed in Malaysia's lack of cooperation in 
arresting suspected terrorists who had entered Malaysia from 
Thailand.  Thaksin seemed pleased that members of the 
National Reconciliation Commission were traveling to the 
southern provinces to assess the situation in person rather 
than only "reading critical reports in the Bangkok papers." 
Thaksin pledged to implement the Commission's recommendations 
and singled out the Commission head, former PM Anand 
Panyarachun, as a man to whom he would listen.  END SUMMARY. 
 
RELATIONS ARE GOOD -- THE TSUNAMI BROUGHT OUT OUR STRENGTHS 
 
2.  (C)  PM Thaksin began the meeting by expressing approval 
that this year's Cobra Gold exercise, underway in Chiang Mai 
and elsewhere in the country, was focused on lessons learned 
from the relief effort after the December 26 tsunami.  He 
thanked ADM Fallon for U.S. assistance during the crisis and 
said he was pleased Thailand was able to allow U.S. forces to 
use Utapao Royal Thai Naval Air Station as the hub for 
regional military relief efforts.  Cobra Gold and similar 
exercises allowed U.S. and Thai forces to work together 
effectively, he said.  Thaksin noted with approval the new, 
multinational flavor to Cobra Gold but stated that, to his 
mind, the most important part of the exercise was the 
combined U.S.-Thai cooperation.  ADM Fallon agreed about the 
importance of the bilateral relationship, telling Thaksin 
that in his conversations with senior Thai military 
officials, he had pledged to work with them to upgrade 
facilities at Utapao and to enhance our ability to work 
together in the future.  Fallon told Thaksin how reporters 
and others who attended the Cobra Gold opening ceremony in 
Chiang Mai on May 2 had expressed admiration for how well and 
how quickly the United States and Thailand were able to 
cooperate during the tsunami crisis. 
 
IRAQ 
 
3.  (C)  ADM Fallon thanked the Prime Minister for Thailand's 
assistance in Afghanistan and in OIF and inquired whether 
Thailand would be prepared to send staff officers to man the 
multinational headquarters as requested in a recent letter 
from CJCS Gen. Myers.  Thaksin said he was pleased with 
recent positive moves in Iraq, noting the establishment of a 
new Cabinet.  Without specifically addressing General Myers' 
letter, Thaksin highlighted the humanitarian nature of 
Thailand's previous six-month rotations to Iraq and said that 
Thailand might be able to provide future assistance so long 
as it could be labeled as "humanitarian."  Thaksin noted that 
some Thai MP's had tried to link the Muslim insurgency in 
southern Thailand with Thailand's OIF deployment but he 
dismissed such comments, saying that Thailand's commitment to 
OIF had not caused any undue problems for his Government. 
 
THAKSIN'S TRIP TO JORDAN 
 
4.  (C)  Continuing his assessment of the Middle East, 
Thaksin said that during his recent trip to Jordan, he had 
related well with PM Adnan Badran.  Noting that Badran was a 
Sandhurst graduate while he was a graduate of the Thai 
National Police Academy, Thaksin said "we former cadets know 
how to talk to each other."  Badran struck Thaksin as 
committed to helping to build a democratic Iraq. 
 
CHINA 
 
5.  (C)  While noting Bangkok's good relations with both 
Tokyo and Beijing, Thaksin expressed deep concern over the 
ongoing Sino-Japanese rift.  Saying "this is not healthy for 
the region" twice, Thaksin suggested that all concerned 
countries should do their utmost to heal the relationship 
between the two countries and pledged to do his "modest best" 
to repair things.  He predicted that cross-strait relations 
would improve, suggesting that Taiwan KMT leader Lien Chan's 
recent visit to Beijing had helped immensely as had Taiwan 
President Chen Shui-bian's expressed willingness to conduct 
talks with the PRC.  Thaksin was dismissive of suggestions 
that Taiwan and the Mainland might someday come to blows, 
characterizing any separatist talk in Taiwan as designed for 
domestic consumption, and citing the PRC's paramount desire 
not to disrupt economic growth. 
 
BURMA 
 
6.  (C)  Explaining differences between U.S. and Thai 
approaches to Burma, Thaksin pointed to the 2,000 plus 
kilometer border Thailand shares with Burma.  Thaksin claimed 
that the Burmese leadership was comfortable talking with him 
and that he always stressed the importance of freedom and 
democratization in talks with Rangoon.  He said that the 
ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) was "riding 
a tiger and afraid of being eaten" in dealing with Karen and 
other minority groups.  Thaksin claimed that ASEAN is the 
only organization linking Burma to the outside world and that 
the SPDC cannot afford to lose that link.  He expressed 
optimism that Burma would eventually agree to give up its 
upcoming chair of ASEAN but admitted it must find a way to do 
so that does not make it seem it is giving in to outside 
pressure.  Thaksin was skeptical that Aung San Suu Kyi would 
be released from house arrest before a new Constitution comes 
into effect and the junta can demonstrate its ability to 
control the political process. 
 
UNREST IN THE SOUTH 
 
7.  (C)  Thaksin pointed to Koranic teachers in schools in 
the South who distort the Koran by persuading youths to rise 
up against the Government as the chief cause for unrest in 
that region.  He stressed that the matter was a strictly 
domestic issue but noted problems with criminals crossing the 
border into Malaysia.  He said that outward appearances of 
smooth relations between Thailand and Malaysia covered 
increasing tensions between the two countries due to 
Thailand's growing frustration over Malaysian unwillingness 
to arrest criminal suspects on their side of the border. 
Thaksin also noted the need to monitor the flow of funds from 
outside Thailand to Koranic schools and other institutions in 
the South.  He suggested that he had evidence that militant 
groups were funded that way in the past. 
 
8.  (C)  Thaksin told ADM Fallon that he was pleased that 
members of the National Reconciliation Commission were now 
traveling to the southern provinces to assess the situation 
in person.  He claimed that earlier they only stayed in 
Bangkok and read press stories criticizing Thaksin's 
policies.  "Such is life with a democratic free press," he 
sighed.  Now that the Commission was working in earnest, he 
pledged to implement their recommendations.  He also singled 
out Commission head, former PM Anand Panyarachun, as a man to 
whom he would listen. 
 
F-16 
 
9.  (C)  ADM Fallon noted the importance of Thailand 
procuring new weapons systems with an eye on interoperability 
with U.S. forces and suggested that F-16 would be a better 
choice for Thailand's planned new fighter purchase than the 
Saab Gripen or the Sukhoi SU-30.  Thaksin told ADM Fallon 
that, during his meeting last year with the Swedish Prime 
Minister, he explained the glut of Thai chicken created in 
the wake of the avian flu crisis and asked whether Sweden 
might be willing to "barter trade things that fly -- Thai 
chickens for Swedish airplanes" or "birds for birds," he 
joked.  According to Thaksin, the Swedish PM agreed to 
explore this deal.  Later, Thaksin said, he met with Russian 
President Putin who also agreed to explore swapping Thai 
chicken for SU-30s.  Putin went on to say that he viewed the 
deal with Russia as better than the deal with Sweden. 
(Comment:  Although not discussed, Thaksin was unaware that 
Lockheed Martin had offered a one hundred percent 
countertrade deal or other recent developments in the fighter 
negotiations.  End Comment).  He clarified that what he 
wanted in the fighter deal was "barter" rather than "offsets" 
or "countertrade" because of Thai concerns about their 
current account situation. 
 
10.  (U)  ADM Fallon has cleared this message. 
BOYCE