| Kingdom of Thailand Ministry of Defence |
|
|---|---|
| กระทรวงกลาโหม | |
| Seal of the Ministry of Defence of Thailand | |
| Ministry overview | |
| Formed | 1887 |
| Jurisdiction | Government of Thailand |
| Headquarters | Ministry of Defence HQ, Sanamchai Rd., Bangkok 10200 |
| Annual budget | 143,518,901,100 Baht (2008) |
| Minister responsible | General Yuthasak Sasiprapha (PT), Minister of Defence of Thailand |
| Ministry executive | General Kittipong Keskowit, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry |
| Website | |
| Mod.go.th | |
The Ministry of Defence of the Kingdom Thailand (Thai: กระทรวงกลาโหม; RTGS: Krasuang Kalahom; Abrv: MOD), is a Cabinet level government department of the Kingdom of Thailand. The Ministry controls and manage the Royal Thai Armed Forces, as well as maintaining national security, territorial integrity and national defence. The Armed Forces of Thailand is made up of three main branches: Royal Thai Army, Royal Thai Navy and Royal Thai Air Force.
Although the King of Thailand is the Supreme Head of the Thai Armed Forces (Thai: จอมทัพไทย) his position is only nominal. The Ministry and the Force is instead administer by an appointed civilian politician: the Minister of Defence of Thailand a member of the Cabinet of Thailand. The post of Minister of Defence has been hold by General Yuthasak Sasiprapha since 9 August 2011.
Contents |
Initially the Ministry was called the "Kalahom Department" (Thai: สมุหกลาโหม), it was charged with the protection the Southern border. It was founded in the late Ayutthaya period and was retained in the Rattanakosin period. The Ministry in its current form was formed in 1887, under the orders of King Chulalongkorn the Great, to create a permanent military command. This was a result of the increasing threat Western powers were having on the country. The actual Ministry was housed in an old horse and elephant stable, opposite the Grand Palace. A new European style building was however build to house it. At first the Ministry only commanded the Army (founded in 1847), it then incorporated the Navy (founded in 1887) and finally the Air Force (founded in 1913).
The Ministry like any other government department is headed by the secretariat who helped the Minister and Deputy Ministers; exercise their authority and administer the department.
Formerly the Supreme Command HQ (until February 2008), the Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters is situated in Bangkok and is a joint committee of the Royal Thai Armed Forces, in charge of Military planning and execution.
The Royal Thai Army is the land forces of the Thai armed forces. The Army is generally divided into four Army Groups, however it is entirely commanded from Bangkok.
The Royal Thai Navy is the sea forces of the Kingdom. It compromises of several surface light and heavy vessels including one Aircraft carrier, the HTMS Chakri Nareubet. The Navy also oversees the Royal Thai Marine Corps.
The Royal Thai Air Force is the air wing of the Thai armed forces. It is one of the oldest Air forces in the world, founded in 1913. It currently provides air defence and air transport for the other branches.
|
||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||