Burma Tha Din News has learned that British Defence Secretary Phillip Hammond is to offer military training to the Royal Thai Army, following the military coup earlier this week.
On Tuesday the head of the Thai Army, Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha, announced the imposition of martial law, and then announced a full military coup yesterday.
A Ministry of Defence spokesperson has told Burma Tha Din News that the imposition of a full military coup meant that Thailand had now met the strict criteria for receiving training. “Martial law wasn't enough,” the spokesman said. “Now that Thailand is detaining political leaders and censoring media, it’s time to spend taxpayer’s money providing free military training to these soldiers.”
The offer means that Thailand is joining an elite few countries with human rights abuses serious enough to get free military training from the British government, including Burma and Eritrea.
The military training will be undertaken in Thailand and the UK.
An official from the Embassy of Thailand in London expressed surprise and delight about the forthcoming offer; “We thought we’d have to persecute religious minorities and assassinate a few political opponents before qualifying for free training. It is very good news that we’ll now be able to do this much more professionally with British help.”
It is not yet known if the USA and Australia will also be providing training.
The Ministry of Defence spokesperson denied that providing the training is linked to future arms sales and investment agreements, telling Burma Tha Din; “Er, well, yes military-run countries do buy more weapons, but that is purely co-incidental. We give free training to soldiers from authoritarian regimes as part of our commitment to world peace.”
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