The two-week-long multinational military exercises, codenamed Cobra Gold 2023, will begin on Feb 27, with about 7,000 military personnel taking part from 30 countries.
The army's chief-of-staff, Gen Thitichai Tianthong, and the US Ambassador to Thailand, Robert F Godec, held a joint press conference yesterday to announce the annual war games. The conference was attended by representatives from the participating countries.
According to the press conference, this year's drills, to be held from Feb 27 to March 10, will consist of three primary events: a staff exercise, which includes a senior leaders' seminar; humanitarian civic assistance projects in Thai communities; and a field training exercise that includes a variety of training events to strengthen regional relationships and enhance interoperability.
The drills, which will be carried out in a strict disease-control setting, was scaled back due to the Covid-19 pandemic last year, according to Gen Thitichai.
Thirty countries will participate in this year's exercises, including the seven member nations who will take part in the full drill.
The exercises are scheduled to take place in the provinces of Lop Buri, Chanthaburi, Sa Kaeo and Rayong.
Gen Thitichai said that although all member countries -- the US, Singapore, Japan, Indonesia, South Korea, Malaysia, and Thailand -- are sending military personnel to join the exercises, most participants will come from the US (3,800) and Thailand (3,000).
According to Col Kurtis A Leffler, Chief of the Joint US Military Advisory Group Thailand (JUSMAG Thai), the number of US participants, at more than 6,000 when combined with personnel in the drill conducted in vessels, will be the highest to join the war game in a decade.
Countries joining as part of the Multinational Planning Augmentation Team (MPAT) are Bangladesh, Canada, France, Mongolia, Nepal, New Zealand, Fiji, Brunei, and the UK.
Ten other countries -- Cambodia, Laos, Brazil, Pakistan, Vietnam, Germany, Sweden, Greece, Kuwait, and Sri Lanka -- will limit their participation to the Combined Observer Liaison Team (COLT) exercise.
The drill, according to Gen Thitichai, rotated the observers' membership every year to include new countries.