Since Kristie Kenney's departure after the most recent transition of Thai government, the post of US ambassador to Thailand had been vacant for almost a year. Finally, the US governments dispatched H.E. Glyn Davies to take up the new US ambassador to Thailand.
Glyn Davies was previously nominated as the representative of the U.S. Secretary of State for North Korea Policy and a member of the permanent representative of the United States to the International Atomic Energy Agency and the United Nations Office in Vienna. With many years of experience in diplomatic affairs, Glyn Davies was invited to the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand to reveal his view towards the country that he has currently posted in.
“In the aftermath of the military coup last year, the US laws kicked in and restrict us from perusing the full spectrum of engagement militarily with Thailand until the country returns to the democratically elected civilian government. We, however, are maintaining the security cooperation such as humanitarian assistance and disaster relief including exercises like Cobra Gold. We saw the two military working together to provide thousands pounds of relief supplies to the victims in Nepal earthquake. We’ve worked with Thai counterparts to counteract trafficking and also provide tactical assistance related to prosecution and building capacity of laws enforcement.
”Nevertheless, despite the broad cooperation, we’ve recognized that Thailand is facing considerable challenges in the moment to seek the path back to democratic rules. Speaking as the United States of America, we want to resume our full cooperative agenda. We, therefore, really want Thailand to traverse from the current period to the sustainable democracy. As the world’s largest continuously functioning democratic republic, we believe that the ultimate source of security lies in the direct participation of our people.”
In a part of the talk, H.E. Davies stated that the public debate is essential to maintain the national security and did not forget to express his concern towards the freedom of speech in Thailand. At the end of the talk, the panel opened for the Q&A session from journalists who addressed issues such as the infamous corruption in Thailand and the arrival of China’s democratic support. As a new school boy in Thailand, the new ambassador admitted that he was spending his effort to study Thailand hard and using all of his working experience in the diplomatic life to get ready for the challenges he would face here.
