AMBASSADOR CRUMPTON DISCUSSES CT COOPERATION WITH

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 BANGKOK 000501 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/26/2016 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER TH PSI SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR CRUMPTON DISCUSSES CT COOPERATION WITH RTG OFFICIALS Classified By: AMBASSADOR RALPH BOYCE. REASON: 1.4 (D) ¶1. (C) Summary: S/CT Coordinator Henry Crumpton and Ambassador Boyce met with Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister Chidchai Wannasathit, National Security Council General Secretary General General Winai Phattiyakul and Ministry of Foreign Affairs Counter-terrorism Coordinator Ambassador Kriangsak Kittichaisaree on January 23. Ambassador Crumpton thanked his Thai hosts for their country's cooperation with the U.S. in the war on terrorism, and added that we should look at additional areas to work together. He urged the Thai to support the PSI and to sign and ratify all of the UN counter-terrorism conventions. Ambassador Crumpton emphasized the Secretary's call for increased regional cooperation in combating international terrorism. Both Ambassadors Crumpton and Boyce urged the Thais to exercise strict adherence to human rights principles in their efforts to fight violent terrorists in Thailand's south. End summary. ¶2. (C) In back to back meetings with Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister Chidchai Wannasathi and on National Security Council General Secretary General General Winai Phattiyakulon January 23, Ambassador Crumpton expressed his deep satisfaction with Thai continued willingness to work with the United States against international terrorism. He cited the capture of Hambali in 2003 as a textbook example of how cooperation and information sharing can bring international terrorists to book. Both DPM Chidchai and General Winai shared Ambassador Crumpton's satisfaction with the state of US-Thai counter-terrorism (CT) cooperation and agreed on the need for more joint efforts to meet new threats to the region. ¶3. (C) Ambassador Crumpton noted that new international threats are coming to the fore. Iran's profile is rising and Al Qaeda remains a long-term threat. Bio-terrorism is an area of particular concern. He stressed the importance of Thailand signing on to the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) in light of the evolving threat. Ambassador Crumpton also urged Thailand to sign and ratify all of the UN Counter Terrorism Conventions. Winai responded that Thailand in recent years has been facing a new dynamic. He said that Thailand's experience in combating the avian flu has raised sensitivities on the Public Health Ministry's need to address �0A;potential bio-terrorism threats. Winai said that Thailand consults with its ASEAN partner Singapore on CT issues and cited the recent urban disaster response "Exercise North Star" in Singapore as particularly relevant for Thailand's needs. ¶4. (C) Ambassador Crumpton told both Winai and Deputy Prime Minister Chidchai that the Secretary is emphasizing the importance of regional cooperation in the international effort against terrorism. Al Qaida (AQ) and Jemaah Islamiya (JI) ignore international borders, he said -- in response we need to cooperate across borders. Ambassador Crumpton added that it is important now that we graduate from CT operational commonality to regional CT policy coordination. As threats and locales change, so must strategies to confront them. ¶5. (S) Turning to the violence in Thailand's deep south, Ambassador Crumpton asked Chidchai for his assessment. Chidchai commented that "things are on the right path," and described related U.S. assistance to Thailand as "just right." In response to Ambassador Crumpton's query, Chidchai said that Thai-Malaysian cooperation on their border is good. The Ambassador asked about the recently announced civil rights commissions that will succeed the National Reconciliation Commission (NRC) (The National Committee on Civil Liberties and Justice and the Independent Commission on Justice and Civil Liberties for the Southern Border Provinces). Chidchai said that these bodies will help ensure that security personnel will not abuse their powers. He said he himself has been urging security forces personnel to respect citizens' human rights. The Ambassador pointed out that they should be aware that separatists will try to provoke the security forces and that any brutal responses by police or soldiers would only play into the hands of the separatists. Both Ambassadors Crumpton and Boyce stressed the need to Chidchai for Thai police and army personnel to adhere to good human rights practices while enforcing security measures in the region. (This point was also strongly emphasized to Chidchai by Embassy SA in a meeting the same day.) ¶6. (C) Ambassador Crumpton also emphasized to Ministry of Foreign Affairs Counter-terrorism Coordinator Ambassador Kriangsak Kittichaisaree the priority Washington has given to regional cooperation against international terrorism and urged Thailand to announce support for the PSI Statement of Principles and all of the UN Counter Terrorism conventions. Kriangsak described to Ambassador Crumpton the RTG's efforts to keep Thai Muslim youth from being attracted to Al Qaeda and JI's philosophy by improving the education system and through expanded job training programs. Kriengsak said that religious school-educated Thai Muslims do not have adequate Thai language or marketable employment skills. Kriangsak agreed with Ambassador on the need for greater counter-terrorism cooperation in Southeast Asia and noted that the Thai Embassy in Jakarta had been threatened in the aftermath of the Tak Bai incident. Kriangsak also noted the past U.S. role in detaining and turning over to Thailand Somali pirates who had hijacked a Thai fishing vessel in the Indian Ocean, citing this as a good example of multilateral cooperation against international crime. BOYCE