Press Releases
Embassy of the United States of America
Bangkok
April 1, 2008
U.S. – Thai Training Program Resumes: Thai Colonel the First to Go
Bangkok, April 1, 2008--- U.S. Ambassador to Thailand, Eric G. John, presented Royal Thai Air Force Wing Commander Jumphol Chantakamma with an official visa, invitation and plane tickets to travel to the United States. Colonel Jumphol is the first Thai military officer scheduled to attend an International Military Education Training (IMET) funded course since the U.S. lifted assistance restrictions in February. He will depart on April 2 to participate in English language training at Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas, in preparation to attend the Air Command and Staff College at Maxwell-Gunter Air Force Base, Montgomery, Alabama.
Ambassador John said, "I am delighted that Lt. Col. Jumpol will be going to the United States on the IMET program." He added, "The military alliance between our two countries is one of the oldest and most important." After presenting Lt. Col. Jumpol with his visa, invitation and air ticket, Ambassador John warmly shook the Wing Commander's hand and said that he looked forward to seeing him when he returned from the States.
The IMET program has been one of the strongest and most enduring exchange programs between the United States and Thailand and began in 1951, then it was called the Military Assistance Program (MAP). The Joint United States Military Advisory Group Thailand (JUSMAGTHAI) is the U.S. Security Assistance Organization (SAO) in Thailand, as well as the in-country office of primary responsibility for all U.S. bilateral and multilateral military exercises and operations conducted in Thailand. Unlike most SAOs, JUSMAGTHAI has primary responsibility, or otherwise directly supports, a variety of missions, including a robust Joint Combined Bilateral Exercise Program (averaging over 40 exercises a year), a large International Military Education and Training (IMET) programs in the world, as well as humanitarian demining and counterdrug missions.
In February 2008, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice certified to Congress that a democratically elected government was in place in Thailand. At a press conference on February 7 announcing the lifting of assistance restrictions, Ambassador John said, “Our engagement with Thailand is mutually beneficial, and I want to emphasize that the Thai government and Thai armed forces’ cooperation with the U.S. military is deeply valued by United States.” He added, “Thailand is one of our closest friends and partners in Asia and we have enjoyed relations with Thailand longer than any other country in Asia. As such, we are especially pleased to restore the full range of relations, especially as we celebrate 175 years of U.S. - Thai relations this year.”
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