181. Letter From Thai Prime Minister Kriangsak to President Carter1
I wish to thank you most sincerely for your letter of November 7, 1979,2 personally delivered to me by your wife, Mrs. Rosalynn Carter, on the eve of her departure from Thailand after concluding an unofficial visit here to investigate the plight of the suffering Kampuchean refugees along Thailand’s eastern border.
The Government and people of Thailand owe a debt of gratitude to you, Mr. President, for the interest in and sympathy for the Kampuchean refugees which you have demonstrated in dispatching your wife to our country for this important mercy mission. As a result of this visit, I feel certain Mrs. Carter must have shared with us the feeling that this problem is a human tragedy of the first magnitude. We are greatly encouraged when we learn soon after Mrs. Carter’s departure that the US Government has now decided to expedite the emergency relief aid for the Kampuchean refugees3 and to increase the intake of refugees from Thailand to the United States. No doubt, such actions are bound to generate wider international response resulting in more contributions both in cash and in kind, as well as increased resettlements in third countries of the refugees now residing in Thai holding centers. Already, we are witnessing an increase in these contributions or pledges of contributions, which we hope will help to lessen the financial burden of Thailand.
As you are aware, the root cause of the Kampuchean refugees has been and will continue to be the ongoing war of aggression committed by Vietnam against Kampuchea. Although we have now succeeded in bringing the majority of the world to our side as evidenced by the recent voting in the UN General Assembly on the item “the Situation in Kampuchea”, there is still a pressing need for us to continue to focus its attention on this problem.4 Indeed we cannot afford to be [Page 635] complacent. We cannot allow the world’s conscience which has been awakened, and the renewed interest shown by the American public towards this matter, to ever slip into oblivion if we are to achieve the final results that have been much hoped for. Instead, it seems to me that constant and continuous pressure—both political and diplomatic, and for that matter even economic—must be brought to bear upon the Vietnamese so that they may soon find it to be in their interest to change the course of policy. We are counting on the sympathetic support and understanding of our good friend the United States for our cause. We would therefore urge the US Government to continue to play a central role in these processes, for the more efforts the United States are exerting both internationally and domestically the nearer they will bring us to our desired objectives.
I cannot emphasize too much the importance which we attach to our relations with the United States. We regard friendship and cooperation with the United States a high priority in the conduct of our foreign policy. It is therefore gratifying for me to note that our cooperative relations have achieved a remarkable degree of closeness and are steadily expanding in wide-ranging fields during the present US Administration. This gives us great confidence in meeting the challenges of the difficult times in which we now find ourselves. But as always, we shall seek to be self-reliant as we have been for centuries, especially on matters that border on national pride and sovereignty.
That is why we in Thailand are vigorously implementing various development strategies with a view to strengthening our national resilience. In these difficult tasks, of course meaningful assistance from the more economically advanced countries with which we feel we share a common commitment such as the United States can be of great value, especially in view of the fact that as a small, developing country with limited means Thailand has been hard hit by the ill-effects of world-wide inflation, recession, the problem of unemployment and an energy crisis. I would therefore propose that we seriously contemplate the possibility of intensifying our partnership in the economic and development fields, as well as in all other fields of common interest. Although it is true that the United States has been making substantial contributions towards our national development over the years—the fact for which we are always grateful—increased assistance in a manner that is either required by or consistent with our national objectives and development needs would be most timely at this crucial juncture. If for no other reasons, it should be clear to both of us that an economically viable Thailand can serve a useful purpose in all endeavours leading to peace and stability not only in Southeast Asia but also in the world.
[Page 636]With warmest personal regards and best wishes,
Yours sincerely,
- Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Brzezinski Material, President’s Correspondence with Foreign Leaders File, Box 19, Thailand, Prime Minister Kriangsak Chomanan, 12/77–5/80. No classification marking.↩
- See Document 179.↩
- See Document 63.↩
- Reference is to UN General Assembly Resolution 34/22 adopted on November 14. See Yearbook of the United Nations, 1979, pp. 306–307.↩
- Kriangsak signed “Kchomanan” above his typed signature.↩