Page 3 - DEFENSE & SECURITY 2022 - Day 1 | DAILY NEWS

THAILAND, USA BOOST DEFENCE

TIES WITH LANDMARK INFORMATION

EXCHANGE AGREEMENT

In a major boost to the defence
cooperation between Thailand
and the USA, both nations recently
inked an information exchange
agreement during a virtual cer-
emony. The agreement, titled
“Remote Sensing for Base Perimeter
Defence,” is the first International
Armaments Cooperation col-
laboration between the U.S.
Department of Defence and Thai
Ministry of Defence.
Lt. Gen. Somkiat Sampan,
Defence Science and Technology
Department director-general
from the Thai Ministry of Defence
and Kelli L. Seybolt, Deputy Thai Ministry of Defence Lt. Gen. Somkiat Sampan,
Under Secretary of the Air Force, Defence Science and Technology Department director-general and
International Affairs, were signa- Kelli L. Seybolt, Deputy Under Secretary of the Air Force, International
tories to the agreement, which will Affairs, pictured during the signing of an information exchange
result in deeper collaboration on agreement Titled “Remote Sensing for Base Perimeter Defense.”
defence technologies between
both nations. Lt. Gen. Sampan said: Image courtesy US DoD, video screenshot by Lynette Whitesell.
“Our relationship and our coop-
eration in the past … made this systems that can sense, detect, Exploratory discussions were first
[information exchange agreement] and classify installation threats. held at the Royal Thai Air Force
possible.” Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) Academy with representation
“This important step forward is Prototypes from both nations will from the U.S. Air Force Institute
just the latest manifestation of be tested, and feedback shared. of Technology, the U.S. Air Force
our deep and enduring relation- There are now inexpensive, Academy, Secretary of the Air Force
ship,” Seybolt said. “United by our field-deployable technologies International Affairs, and the Joint
shared commitment to a free and that have the potential to defend United States Military Advisory Group
Thailand in November 2019.
open Indo-Pacific, Thailand is our installations using automated “It is a thrill to expand the scope
oldest friend and ally in Asia, and remote sensing. of our security cooperation with
our close cooperation reflects a Thailand first proposed the topic Thailand,” Seybolt concluded. “And
friendship of nearly two centuries.” for the agreement and it was found it is our sincere hope that this is only
The agreement will allow both the that it overlapped with current the start of a robust series of coop-
USA and Thailand to advance the research activities and interests erative activities in next-generation
theory and testing needed for of the U.S. Air Force. defense technologies.

FOR EDITORIAL ASSISTANCE AND ENQUIRIES
PLEASE VISIT US AT STAND NO. BB04

Editorial Director Arun Sivasankaran Art Director
Vittorio Rossi Prudente arun.sivasankaran@gbp.com.sg Sudheesh Kularmunda
PUBLISHED BY vittorio.prudente@gbp.com.sg sudheekannanz@gmail.com
Atul Chandra
atul.chandra@gbp.com.sg
Editorial Team: Sales Director
Jay Menon Yulian Ardiansyah Akshay Satyamurthy
jay.menon@gbp.com.sg yulian.ardiansyah@gbp.com.sg akshay.satyamurthy@gbp.com.sg
DEFENCE & SECURITY 2022 AUGUST 29 2022 3