Thailand Balances Defence Relations with China and the U.S.

Our Bureau - : Nov 10, 2025 - : 10:25 pm

With the shadow of China’s growing military might and ambitions looming over the region, countries in Southeast Asia are reshaping their defence engagement strategies to safeguard autonomy and enhance regional stability. Thailand, United States’ treaty partner, is no exception. The...

To read the full article, please log in or enter your email below:

The United States remains a key security partner, but it is no longer the biggest provider of weapons to the country. According to a report by Australian think tank Lowy Institute, Washington was the top exporter of weapons to Bangkok over the ten years to 2017, accounting for 12 per cent of the total arms acquired by the country. U.S. criticism of the 2014 military coup in Thailand, which led to Washington freezing US$4.7 million worth of security assistance to the country, not only had an adverse effect on arms sales but also affected the dynamics of the bilateral relationship.

It is a situation that China has deftly exploited; Beijing is now the premier arms supplier to Thailand and has also developed strong ties with the country through bilateral military exercise. Over the ten years to 2025, China has accounted for 29 per cent of Bangkok’s military purchases while Washington’s share has largely remained the same.

A Growing Partnership

Thailand’s imports from China includes armoured vehicles, air defence systems, and submarines. A joint military production facility in Thailand, proposed by China and Thailand in 2016, is yet to materialize, but the project hasn’t been dropped. Bangkok is the first export customer of the VT-4 main battle tank, the export version of the MBT-3000 made by China North Industries Corporation (Norinco). The Royal Thai Army (RTA) ordered 28 VT-4s in 2016 and issued a follow up order the following year for another 10. In October 2023, the RTA took delivery of yet another batch of 12 Chinese VT-4 MBTs. The service also uses VN-1 wheeled armoured vehicles and armoured rescue vehicles made by the same company. Thailand is also the inaugural export customer of the Type 071E landing platform dock (LPD) made by China State Shipbuilding Corp, with the Royal Thai Navy commissioning HTMS Chang in April this year.

Both China and the US have benefited from waning Russian influence in Southeast Asia. Moscow was the region’s largest arms supplier until around 2018, but its share of the arms market in the region dipped from a high of 43 per cent in 2011 to 8 per cent in 2021, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). The ongoing war has affected Russia’s ability to sell weapons, and many countries in the region are also worried about purchase of Russian arms inviting crippling sanctions from the U.S.

Strategic Move

Washington is keen on further improving defence ties with Bangkok, and the threat of additional tariffs by President Doland Trump might end up helping U.S. defence contractors enhance their footprint in the country as well as the region. According to reports, the Royal Thai Army is likely to acquire about 130 Stryker armored vehicles, made by General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS), from the U.S. Also in the works is a deal with Washington for a comprehensive cybersecurity system. Reports indicate that the Thailand Ministry of Defence is drafting a list of military equipment that the armed forces need; officials are hoping that the weapons shopping list will help the country negotiate lower tariff rates.

In March 2023, the United States turned down Thailand’s request for Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jets to replace its ageing F-5 and F-16 fighters. The country had set aside 13.8 billion baht (US$407.68 million) and was planning to buy up to eight jets of the type, two initially. In place of the F-35s, Washington offered F-16 Block 70 and F-15 Eagle fighters, but Thailand has instead signed a US$550 million deal to buy four Gripen E/F fighter jets from Saab, with an order value of around 5.3 billion Swedish kroner ($550 million USD).

With China strengthening its defence ties with Thailand, it might become increasingly tough for U.S. defence companies to enhance their footprint in the country, but Washington is keen to safeguard its existing ties with Bangkok that currently involves weapons sales, joint military drills, and military training. The U.S. is Thailand’s largest export market; Thai exports to the U.S. in 2024 were valued at approximately $55.11 billion. The U.S. is also the third largest source of foreign direct investment (FDI) into Thailand.

Enduring Ties

The high level of interoperability and familiarity between the Thai and US militaries can be seen from the fact that Thailand participated in 49 combined exercises with the U.S. over the 2023–2024 period. Cobra Gold, hosted by Thailand, is the region’s largest and longest-running multilateral military exercise; the 2025 exercise involved about 30 countries. There has been a steady decline in the scale of U.S. participation in the exercise since the mid-1990s. This is in stark contrast to the way Falcon Strike, the annual bilateral air force exercise involving Bangkok and Beijing, has developed. While Thailand was the senior partner during the first three-day edition in 2015, as many as 13 types of People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) aircraft and ground-based air defence systems took part in the 11-day exercise in 2024.

Washington has sold more than US$3 billion worth of arms to Thailand as part of U.S. Foreign Military Sales (FMS). Among the equipment and capabilities delivered are Stryker infantry carrier vehicles, AH-6i light attack reconnaissance, UH-60M Black Hawk and UH-72A Lakota helicopters; F-16A/B Block 15 aircraft Mid-Life Upgrades; and RGM-84L Harpoon Block II and Evolved Sea Sparrow missiles.

Apart from weapons, Thailand received US$2.68 million in International Military Education and Training (IMET) funding in FY 2021, and US$2.2 million in FY 2022. Thailand also received US$14 million in FY 2021 Foreign Military Financing (FMF) through the Southeast Asia Maritime Security Initiative (SAMSI) and the Advanced Targeting Development Initiative (ATDI) for maritime security and other projects. In 2022, Washington provided Thailand US$25 million in FMF for Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief efforts, Maritime Domain Awareness, technical and professional training.

Gripen-e-f / Royal-thai-navy / Royal-thai-army / Defence-and-security-2025 /

MORE NEWS