Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
05BANGKOK5559
2005-08-30 07:00:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Bangkok
Cable title:  

U.S. ENGAGEMENT IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF TSUNAMI

Tags:  AORC EAID SENV TPHY TH KSCI 
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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BANGKOK 005559 

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

DEPT FOR OES/ETIRPAK AND OES/ASTEWART

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: AORC EAID SENV TPHY TH KSCI
SUBJECT: U.S. ENGAGEMENT IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF TSUNAMI
WARNING SYSTEMS: THAILAND'S VIEWS

REF: A) STATE 152264 B) BANGKOK 870 C) BANGKOK 4796

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BANGKOK 005559

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

DEPT FOR OES/ETIRPAK AND OES/ASTEWART

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: AORC EAID SENV TPHY TH KSCI
SUBJECT: U.S. ENGAGEMENT IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF TSUNAMI
WARNING SYSTEMS: THAILAND'S VIEWS

REF: A) STATE 152264 B) BANGKOK 870 C) BANGKOK 4796


1. (SBU) Following receipt of the demarche in Ref A, U.S.
Trade and Development Agency Officer contacted Deputy
Director General Kriengkrai of Thailand's Meteorological
Department (Met Dept) under the Ministry of Information and
Communication Technology and an official at Thailand's
National Disaster Warning Center (NDWC) who requested not to
be identified by name. Both officials were candid in their
answers to the questions listed in Ref A. Although Mission
was aware of Thailand's tendency to "go it alone" with regard
to Tsunami Warning Systems (TWS),we were surprised at the
level of misgiving the Thais displayed towards the IOC
Intergovernmental Coordination Group's coordination of an
Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning System (IOTWS) among Indian
Ocean countries. End summary.


2. (SBU) The questions and answers below are keyed to the
questions listed in para 15 of Ref A:

- (For Indian Ocean countries only) If the Indian Ocean
Tsunami Warning System (IOTWS) should be managed by a single,

SIPDIS
regional center in the Indian Ocean region, where should the
IOTWS center be located and why?

Met Dept: Thailand favors the idea of establishing a national
center in each Indian Ocean country and encouraging close
cooperation between those centers. It appears that many
countries in the region want to be the regional center,
starting with Australia, India, Thailand, and Indonesia; more
recently Malaysia, Pakistan, Iran have shown interest in
becoming the regional center ) it appears that it will be
difficult to arrive at consensus for a single country to be
the center.

We are also concerned that some Indian Ocean countries may
not be willing to cooperate fully, especially India who did
not share information on the July 24 earthquake near Nicobar
Island. This does not bode well for IOTWS efforts. (Embassy
note: We are relaying here what the Thai Meteorological
Department told us and cannot corroborate its statement about
India sharing or not sharing information. End note.)

NDWC: Thailand does not favor the idea of establishing a
single regional center (as the Thai delegation stated in

Perth). One of our main concerns is that unless the regional
center gets full support and cooperation from the other
Indian Ocean countries, it will be unable to accomplish its
tasks.

Embassy comment: Thailand pushed hard its bid to become the
regional center for an IOTWS at a ministerial meeting it
hosted in Phuket at the end of January (Ref A). After it
failed to win support from India, Australia, and Indonesia at
that meeting, it has consistently supported the notion of a
multi-nodal system in which no single country is designated
the regional center.

- Is your government committed to purchase TWS equipment or
has it received assistance for the purchase of TWS equipment?
What kind of equipment? Where do you perceive a need for
additional assistance?

Met Dept: Prime Minister Thaksin wants three DART buoys to be
completely installed by September 2006 (one buoy installed in
early 2006 and two more buoys by the end of 2006). Thailand
will also buy at least one TWS cable system (Japanese) and
some tidal gauges. Thailand is interested in NOAA and
Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC)
products and services, but needs to assure that:
1) NOAA can supply buoys in a reasonable time period
2) SAIC has a local rep who can deal with after-sales-services
3) Technical assistance can be provided to help Thailand link
and integrate the data from the various detection devices.

Thailand also urgently needs a quotation from NOAA regarding
DART buoy and maintenance costs. Meanwhile, Germany is
aggressively promoting its Ocean buoy. Germany recently
donated two buoys to Indonesia and plans to donate more.

NDWC: The Thai government has allocated a budget of 400
million baht ($10 million USD) to procure a TWS cable system
(Japanese) to be installed near Thai islands in the Andaman
Sea. The Japanese cable
System may be able to complement the buoy system. We also
have a budget 180 million baht ($4.5 million) for the
procurement of buoys. The government would prefer to
purchase more sophisticated technology such as DART buoys,
but may have to consider less high-tech options such as the
lower cost German buoys. Procurement decisions will be made
soon.

Embassy comment: During a mid-August visit to Thailand, David
McKinnie of NOAA and Orestes Anastasia, USAID Program Manager
for the IOTWS program based in Bangkok, told officials from
the Meteorological Department and the Seismological Bureau
that the high-tech DART buoys are not currently available
(each buoy is fabricated individually by NOAA) and that when
they do become available, they will not be offered to
individual governments per se, but to the Indian Ocean Region
as a whole under the UNESCO/Intergovernmental Oceanographic
Commission (IOC) framework. In addition, it is noteworthy
that Germany's buoys (such as those donated to Indonesia) are
still in the R&D phase, and do not have the same degree of
demonstrated reliability as U.S. DART buoys.

- What is your impression of what the IOC Intergovernmental
Coordination Group should have in place within the next six
months? How do you plan to demonstrate new domestic warning
capabilities in that timeframe?
Met Dept: No comment on the IOC Intergovernmental
Coordination Group. Thailand cannot possibly demonstrate new
capabilities within the next six months because the
procurement and installation of buoys, TWS cable and tidal
gauges won't be completed until at least September 2007.

NDWC: Thailand has been unimpressed by the IOC. Thai
officials who participated in previous IOC meetings commented
that the meetings were a lot of talk with no action.
Thailand may reconsider its level of participation in future
IOC meetings. The NDWC may delay major decisions on
investments until early October, pending personnel changes.

Embassy comment: We were surprised at the level of
frustration our interlocutors voiced with the IOC process.
Since its own attempt at being designated the regional center
in January failed, however, Thailand has said all along that
its first priority is developing a national TWS, coordinating
with other Indian Ocean countries and the IOC as possible.

Embassy comment continued: The Meteorological Department and
NDWC interlocutors focused on the high-tech detection
component of its TWS. In fact, the other components of its
TWS ) national communications system and public awareness
and response ) were tested successfully following the July
24 earthquake near Nicobar Island. On July 24, the NDWC
broadcast a live television alert within 20 minutes of first
learning of the earthquake (from Malaysia). Local officials
evacuated thousands of people from their homes and, except
for numerous traffic jams, without major incident (Ref B).
ARVIZU