Korea crisis or not, Prayut’s US trip a moment of truth

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EDITORIAL

Korea crisis or not, Prayut’s US trip a moment of truth

By The Nation

 

October meeting between the coup leader and President Trump will surely be one for the books

BANGKOK: -- Thailand has been behaving like a kid in a candy store ever since United States President Donald Trump invited Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha last April to visit him in Washington.

 

For the general, who loves photo ops and a share of the international spotlight, thinking a high profile might legitimise his post-coup government, the invitation must have been music to his ears. But, when the head of a government visits his counterparts overseas, he has to remember that the visits aren’t about him. They’re about the country he represents.

 

Trump also invited Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte and Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. (A meeting with the latter might help Trump overcome his confusion between Lee and Indonesian President Joko Widodo. He once got them mixed up.)

 

Duterte and Lee must have sensed something was not quite right about Trump’s invitation and downplayed it afterward. Neither man’s legitimacy to rule is in question, it must be noted. Members of the diplomatic community have suggested that Lee didn’t want to antagonise Beijing by flying to Washington, and nor Duterte, who was preoccupied at the time with the territorial dispute in the South China Sea.

 

In Thailand, reaction to the White House call was cause for boasting. In the US, though, some policymakers were less than pleased about a coup general being welcomed into the Oval Office. Inviting Duterte was bad enough after his foul-mouthed assaults on President Barack Obama and the US in general. Trump is much like Prayut, however. It always has to be “about him”. He is gifted not just in pre-emptively absolving himself from blame but also pretending that it’s perfectly normal to do so.

 

Despite reservations over this plan, diplomatic protocol does not allow for backtracking on well-publicised invitations to visit. Prayut wants to go to Washington, and we can be sure that the Trump administration will make the most out of it. As one American diplomat has put it, a foreign leader’s visit to Washington, particularly between two treaty allies, is more than merely a lunch date.

The meeting has to produce something of substance.

 

Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai reckons Prayut will meet Trump in October and discuss cooperation on security, military matters, trade and investment – including Thailand’s large trade surplus with the US. But with North Korea high on Trump’s agenda, the chat is bound to go beyond bilateral issues. It is highly unlikely that Trump will merely quiz Prayut as to Thailand’s stance on Pyongyang’s military threat. The premier will be pressed on what specific action Thailand is willing to take to help end the crisis. Trump will be leaning on Prayut to take play a more active role in disarming North Korea.

 

There are signs that the two countries are singing from different songbooks. Hours before US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson met Prayut last week, his department’s acting assistant secretary for East Asian Affairs, Susan Thornton, was quoted as saying Washington wanted Thailand to put the squeeze on North Korean firms doing business here. Don denied the report, citing yet again the need for regional dialogue on the North Korean threat.

 

We’ll see what happens in October, when Prayut and Thailand will face a moment of truth. It’s to be hoped Pyongyang’s belligerence is no longer an issue by then – it’s already withdrawn its vow to fire missiles close to Guam. If not, Prayut will be deep in serious business. The “hermit state” not only plays for keeps – it never plays by the rules.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/opinion/30323936

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2017-08-16

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Trump is going to ask Thailand to drop their tax on imported US goods. Maybe I can finally buy a bottle of $10 California wine and not pay $45 like it is now.