(Phnom Penh): Last week, an agreement was signed for the sale of four Gripen aircraft between the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV) and Thailand – the first batch of twelve Gripen E/F aircraft offered by Sweden. FMV Director General Mikael Granholm commented that FMV ‘has worked intensively on behalf of the government to get this deal in place’ and that ‘this marks the next chapter in our long-standing cooperation with Thailand’. Thailand has previously purchased twelve Gripen aircraft.
The agreement should never have been signed. Thailand oscillates between being a full-fledged military dictatorship and variations thereof. The immediate context for the sale is the escalation of a bloody border conflict with Cambodia, militarily inferior. It was in this conflict that Swedish Gripen aircraft were used in combat for the first time in July. An article in the American magazine National Interest estimates that the Gripen aircraft were so militarily decisive that they were the ‘real winners’ of the conflict.
Contrary to how it is often portrayed in international media, the fighting that began in July is not a blurry border conflict between two equal parties, but an asymmetrical conflict that increasingly bears the hallmarks of a full-scale war of aggression against Cambodia. Ultimately, the conflict boils down to Thailand's refusal to recognise the 1907 border demarcation. While Thailand has stubbornly insisted that its territorial claims must be resolved bilaterally, Cambodia, as the militarily weaker party, has consistently relied on international law. Cambodia therefore took the case of the Preah Vihear temple to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which in 1962 and again in 2013 ruled that it belongs to Cambodia. Thailand does not recognise the ICJ's decision. The temple, which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, was reportedly severely damaged in July by shelling and bombing in the area by Thai F16 aircraft.
The origins of the latest flare-up of the conflict are complex and opaque, with economic interests and political intrigues between different factions playing a triggering role. But a familiar dynamic has taken root: the Thai military is using the conflict to consolidate its own position and undermine civilian actors, while whipping up ultra-nationalist sentiment in the country.
After extensive fighting that is estimated to have claimed at least 43 civilian lives and caused the displacement of 300,000 people, a ceasefire was reached on 28 July, consolidated by a ceasefire agreement on 7 August. It was brokered by Anwar Ibrahim, president of ASEAN (Association of South East Nations) chair Malaysia, with the personal involvement of US President Donald Trump and the support of China. In Phnom Penh, signs have been put up thanking Trump for the peace that Cambodia hopes to have been achieved – a reverent courtship of the superpowers on which Cambodia entirely depends for its territorial integrity. Militarily, Thailand is completely superior to Cambodia, and many Cambodians fear a full-scale invasion.
Such fears have been fuelled by a number of signals from the Thai army since the ceasefire came into effect. On 10 August, the notorious commander-in-chief of the Thai army's second region, Boonsin Padklang, announced that he would lead the military to advance further without any opposition from the civilian government. Thai soldiers are now reportedly entering Cambodian villages, driving out the local population and putting up barbed wire. Eighteen Cambodian soldiers are being held as prisoners of war by Thailand – they were captured after the ceasefire came into effect. The situation therefore remains tense and there is a real risk of further escalation. At this sensitive stage, the signals, involvement, observation and presence of the outside world is crucial to maintaining an extremely fragile peace.
Sweden's sale of Gripen aircraft to Thailand in this situation is moving in the opposite direction, undermining regional security. It also permanently damages Sweden's positive image in Cambodia and among forces for peace in the region. That image was already tarnished in December 2023 when the Swedish government decided to end bilateral cooperation with non-governmental actors in Cambodia. This quickly dismantled the solid and niche work that Sweden had built up over a long period of time. Recent discussions on social media testify to how Swedish hypocrisy is now being exposed, with its self-image as the supposed exporter of democracy.
Read original: https://www.dn.se/debatt/thailandsk-gripenaffar-far-sverige-att-se-ut-som-en-skurkstat/
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