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Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – Indonesia has successfully built one of the country’s three submarines, through cooperation with South Korea and PT PAL Indonesia. Indonesia is the only ASEAN country capable of building its own submarines, causing a stir in the region.
Neighboring countries are also busy acquiring submarines, including Thailand. Unfortunately, in Thailand the acquisition of submarines imported from China is generating controversy among the people.
Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha postponed the purchase of two Chinese-made military submarines for a year due to strong public reaction. The decision to buy a submarine is considered controversial by the community amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
On Monday (8/31/2020), the Royal Thai Navy asked the parliament’s budget committee to cut funding for the acquisition of two submarines for the current fiscal year to zero.
On the same day, government spokesman Anucha Burapachaisri said that Prayuth, who is also the defense minister, had told the Navy to postpone the deal until fiscal year 2022. Anucha said Thailand would begin negotiations with China on the details. of the delay.
The decision marks the reversal of the Prayuth government amid a wave of protests by young Thais seeking political reform and greater protection of civil liberties.
Two Chinese-made Yuan-class S26T submarines cost 22.5 billion baht ($ 720 million / $ 360 million) over seven years of acquisition. The government is trying to allocate more than 3 billion baht as a down payment in its 2021 budget, but the move has received strong reactions from the public.
The public criticized Prayuth for spending funds to buy submarines rather than using them to support the country’s economy, which collapsed during the pandemic.
The submarine was a purchase for the second and third fleets of the three submarines that Prayuth promised the Thai and Chinese Navy when he became the leader of the junta that overthrew the Thai government in 2014.
According to the Navy, the budget for the first submarine was approved in 2017. It is currently being produced by China for delivery in 2024, while the second and third submarines have received protests from the Thai people.
On the other hand, the meeting of the lower house budget subcommittee on August 22 did not reach a unanimous conclusion. A vote by the president, a member of the ruling Palang Pracharat Party, allows agreement on the entire budget.
Yutthapong Jarassathian, vice chairman of the subcommittee of the opposition Pheu Thai Party, was one of four members who opposed the sub-purchase decision.
According to him, a memorandum of understanding exchanged for the first submarine order between Prayuth and then-Chinese Defense Minister Chang Wanquan did not indicate that Thailand was obliged to buy two additional submarines.
“The prime minister has to choose between submarines and the economic viability of the people,” he said, quoted by Yutthapong. Asian Nikkei Magazine.
The subcommittee’s decision sparked criticism online, leading to the hashtag #PeopleSayNoToSubs on Thai Twitter.
But Royal Thai Navy Chief of Staff Sittiporn Maskasem said the Navy needed more submarines as part of its defense strategy. He urged the public not to politicize the deal.
Thailand’s own economy is currently in a depression. The Covid-19 pandemic has dealt a crushing blow to Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy. Gross domestic product contracted 12.2% year-on-year in the second quarter. It was the biggest contraction since 1998, when Thailand was struggling with the Asian financial crisis.
The Office of the National Council for Economic and Social Development estimates a contraction of 7.3% to 7.8% by 2020, which could be the worst drop in Thailand’s history. The kingdom’s economy contracted by 7.6% in 1998.
Tourism, which represents about 20% of the economy, is the industry most affected. Exports, including tourism spending, fell 28.3%.
The government approved a stimulus package for domestic tourism called “We travel together” that is expected to generate 2 million domestic trips from July to October, helping to generate income for companies such as hotels, restaurants, airlines and travel agencies.
At least the Thai government has set aside a budget of 22.4 billion baht for the package, which is about the same as the purchase of two Chinese submarines.
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