THAILAND has ruled out linking defence and security cooperation with the United States to ongoing tariff negotiations, insisting that national security, sovereignty and public safety cannot be used as bargaining tools.
Defence Ministry spokesman Rear Admiral Surasant Kongsiri said on Monday that both Thai and US officials had confirmed that the two matters would remain separate.
His comments followed questions over whether recent visits by senior US defence officials could be connected to Thailand’s negotiations with Washington over tariffs.
Surasant said he had checked with Thai officials involved in the discussions and found that they were also puzzled by reports suggesting a link.
US representatives had likewise confirmed that defence cooperation would not be tied to other negotiations, he said.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth is expected to visit Thailand in the near future, although the date and schedule have yet to be finalised.
According to The Nation, the visit could include the signing of the Joint Vision Statement 2026 (JVS 2026), which is intended to establish the next framework for Thai-US defence cooperation and replace the existing agreement.
Surasant cautioned, however, that the document was still being jointly drafted and that its signing had therefore not been confirmed.
Hegseth is expected to meet Thai Defence Minister Lieutenant General Adul Boonthumjaroen during the proposed visit.
The trip follows a visit to Thailand last week by US Under Secretary of Defence for Policy Elbridge Colby, which Surasant described as preparation for Hegseth’s expected visit and an opportunity to reaffirm the two countries’ longstanding defence relationship.
Thailand and the United States maintain extensive military cooperation, including the annual Cobra Gold exercise and other joint activities.
The two countries have also discussed expanding defence-industrial cooperation, including potential collaboration involving drones.
Surasant stressed that those discussions remained at the conceptual stage and had not progressed to any proposal for the United States to establish a drone manufacturing facility in Thailand.
He said drones were merely one possible area of cooperation, alongside joint military operations and other defence initiatives.
Thailand and the United States are also considering closer cooperation in response to emerging security threats involving artificial intelligence, cyberspace and space.
Surasant described military activities and future defence cooperation as important components of the longstanding relationship between Bangkok and Washington.
He reiterated that none of those security discussions would be incorporated into Thailand’s tariff negotiations with the United States. - August 17, 2026
