The purpose of this thesis is to study Thailand's foreign relations. The specific argument will be that, to a large extent, Thailand was able to keep her independence because of her rulers' ability to adapt the country's policy to the changing circumstances in foreign affairs. Therefore, it was imperative for policymakers to look at the threats to the country's security from the local point of view and to develop appropriate policies for dealing with them accordingly. The thesis is organized into six chapters. After the introductory chapter, the second and third chapters examine the historical development and the general features of the foreign relations of Thailand, respectively. Chapter Four deals with the change in the direction of foreign policy after the Second World War. In contrast to the traditional foreign policy, the government under military dictatorship gradually moved in the direction of the Western, especially American, position. The positive and negative consequences of the pro-American policy are treated in Chapter Five, It is pointed out that this policy contributed to the sharp increase in activity of Communist insurgents in various parts of the country. By comparing the post-war foreign policy with the traditional policy prior to that time, a conclusion can be drawn that Thailand is better off with her traditional method in dealing with foreign powers, That is, under normal circumstances she should maintain friendly relations with other countries but should not become too closely involved and identified with any foreign power in particular.

This thesis compares Thailand',s relations with the United States and China from 196541975, The realist as-sumes that the structure of power in the internationall system determines overall relations between states' First, this study describes the power situation in southeast Asia in 1965, The next steps are concerned with the study of Thai-U, S. relations and Thai-Chinese relations, The thesis finds that Thailand's relations with the United States and China are determined by the structure of power. When a major power like the United States changes its policies to accommodate China, Thailand, which is a small country, turns to be more friendly with China, These attitudes correlate with the realist assumption,.

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This thesis examines modern politics in Thailand, its policy, and its search for national security, by showing the impact of the United States on Thai politics. The thesis maintains that politics in Thailand are results that come from attempts of the Thai government to adapt to American involvement in Thailand. The thesis describes the Thai government scene from 1945 to 1972. It analyzes the elements of American involvement and factors in Thai society that are pressured by this involvement. The attempts of the Thai government and its politicians to bring their policy more into line with the changing situations are shown in their reactions to problems of Southeast Asia--the focus of which is on the problems of Vietnam, the problems of China, and the withdrawal of the U.S. to a profile of low visibility.