BANGKOK, Jan. 28 (Xinhua) -- Thailand is bound to adopt "cautious, scrupulous" foreign policy in the face of newly sworn-in U.S. President Donald Trump, said a Thai expert on Friday.
Chulalongkorn University's political scientist Surachart Bamrungsuk suggested that the Thai government under Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha apply foreign policy in "cautious, scrupulous" manner while dealing with the U.S. government under maverick and outspoken Trump.
Though it would be too soon at the moment to say whether the new U.S. administration might take any measure in favor of the ASEAN countries in general and Thailand in particular, Prayut's government is strongly advised to get prepared for possibilities of radical changes in the U.S. foreign policy as a whole, Surachart said during an interview with Xinhua.
"While we have to wait and see how Trump's foreign policy will turn out, particularly regarding the ASEAN region, our government is bound to take cautious, scrupulous steps to deal with it," the Chulalongkorn expert commented.
The new U.S. administration's foreign policy would largely differ from that under former U.S. President Barack Obama who launched the so-called rebalance policy toward Southeast Asia and the Far East, he said.
Describing Trump's domestic policy as "inward-looking," Surachart believes that the new U.S. president would undoubtedly take steps to change foreign policy on a substantial and even radical scale.
"Judging from his inauguration speech, it was so obvious that Trump will change foreign policy and put the American people's interests ahead of those of all other countries around the world."
"No wonder Trump has ordered the U.S. withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal. Thus, the overall situation in the ASEAN region remains unpredictable at the moment and we would not have much to do but wait and see," he said.
Thailand might be no longer viewed as the "core" of the ASEAN bloc, given political turmoils and coups over the last decade while the roles of Indonesia and Singapore have been apparently put on the limelight, he added.
