Buri Ram connection shapes Cabinet’s defense portfolio

The selection of Lt Gen Adul Boonthamcharoen as Thailand’s new defense minister underscores the endurance of the so-called “Buri Ram nexus” of politicians and military to ensure the status quo, rather than a military reform suited to cope with dynamic security threats, according to analysts.

Wedded to a rigid national ideology, the ruling Bhumjaithai Party has no solid policies for making any changes in the military although the geopolitical landscape and operational concept of modern warfare demand a degree of reform, says a senior military officer.

“We have now approached the era of hybrid warfare that combines both traditional and non-traditional threats. The military has to be fit for all kinds of wars, such as cyber, guerrilla, asymmetric, and terrorism, as well as information and psychological operations,” he said on condition of anonymity.

While the military is in need of intelligent leadership, Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul appears to have used his political connections, and the Thailand-Cambodia border flare-up as the criterion, to choose his defense minister.

The military conflict with Cambodia might have offered some lessons for the recalibration of security strategy and military operations, the source said.

The Buri Ram connection

Adul, 62, will be the first former military officer to hold the position of defense minister with a rank below four-star general. The former commander of the 2nd Army Region retired from the defense services at the age of 60 in 2024 with the rank of lieutenant general.

With the exception of civilians, previous defense ministers, such as Prawit Wongsuwan, Prayut Chan-o-cha and Natthaphon Narkphanit, were all generals.

Many political analysts believe that Adul got the job due to his close connection with Anutin’s political mentor, Newin Chidchob, a seasoned politician from the northeastern Buri Ram province.

His career in the military involved postings with military units in Buri Ram and the lower part of the northeastern region bordering Cambodia. He rose through the ranks from a junior officer to a company commander before eventually becoming commander of the 23rd Infantry Regiment, 4th Battalion.

This took place during the period when the Chidchob family was consolidating its local political dominance. Newin’s father, the late Chai Chidchob, was also a prominent politician and served as speaker of the lower house.

Adul is regarded as a junior and close associate of political patriarch Newin, with whom he has maintained a longstanding and intimate relationship spanning over four decades.

More importantly, Adul is a classmate of Prime Minister Anutin when they attended a course for high-ranking officials and executives at the National Defense College in 2018-19.

All the AFAPS 26 classmates

While having such a close connection with the leader of the Bhumjaithai Party was a clear advantage, Adul also has strong links with many top brass in the armed forces as an alumnus of the 26th class of the Armed Forces Academies Preparatory School (AFAPS).

Classmates in military school have become consequential in the factionalism rampant in the Thai armed forces for a long time. Military officers have traditionally preferred to work with their classmates and often promote their friends to key positions.

In the same class as Adul were current army chief Phana Khlaeoplotthuk and air force commander Sakesan Kantha.

Other AFAPS 26 classmates currently holding key positions include deputy army chief Chidnuphong Rodsiri, assistant army commander Narongrith Kampheera, army chief of staff Chaiphruek Duangprapat, and army intelligence chief Teeranan Nandhakwang.

All army region commanders were Adul’s classmates at the AFAPS. They include 2nd Army Commander Weerayuth Raksilp, who takes care of the Northeastern region, 3rd Army Region Commander Worathep Bunya, overseeing the Northern region, and 4th Army Region Commander Norathip Poinok of the Southern region.

Furthermore, Special Force Commander Adul Chanma is also from the same AFAPS 26 as Adul.

There are some minor issues of seniority in the armed forces, as Defense Ministry permanent secretary Tharapong Malakham and Navy chief Pairote Fuengchan are members of AFAPS 24.

It might be uncomfortable for Adul to command his senior schoolmates before both of them retire from the defense service at the end of September this year. It is possible that Adul would prefer someone from AFAPS 26 to fill the two positions, a source said.

Cambodia border fare-up matters

It is widely believed that Anutin picked Adul as defense minister not only due to his connections with politicians and the military elite, but also his involvement in the border conflict with Cambodia as an army man.

Adul came into the limelight as commander of the 26th Ranger Regiment, based at Pak Thong Chai / Bodindecha Camp, a key combat unit responsible for security along the Thai–Cambodian border.

Adul was also highly trusted for his capabilities in mass management and intelligence operations in border areas, according to a source.

During the 2008–2011 Thai–Cambodian border conflict over the Hindu Temple of Preah Vihear, he served as commander of the 234th Infantry Battalion and later as deputy commander of the 23rd Infantry Regiment.

In these roles, he led the forces to secure and hold critical positions in key flashpoints, including around Preah Vihear Temple and the Ta Kwai–Ta Muen Thom temple complexes. Adul is regarded as one of the officers with the deepest operational understanding of the terrain and tactics in this area.

He subsequently became commander of the 23rd Infantry Regiment—the principal combat unit in Thailand’s lower Northeast—and then commander of the 6th Infantry Division, and later took over as commander of the Suranaree Task Force, overseeing security along the entire lower northeastern border.

Adul eventually took charge as commander of the 2nd Army Region in 2023 before handing the reins to Boonsin Padklang, a popular commander who steered the military operation against Cambodia in July last year.

Subsequent border skirmishes in July and December resulted in the deaths of 43 Thai soldiers and 18 civilians, with another 44 deaths attributed to collateral effects, and displaced an estimated 300,000–400,000 people.

It is widely acknowledged that Anutin and his Bhumjaithai Party rode the nationalist sentiment arising out of the conflict with Cambodia to win the February election, although the military clashes led to heavy economic losses due to stoppage of border trade and difficulties for people in the areas.