Thanat Khoman

Thanat Khoman (also Thanad; th, ถนัด คอมันตร์; , 9 May 1914 – 3 March 2016) was a Thai diplomat and politician. He was foreign minister from 1959 to 1971, leader of the Democrat Party (Thailand), Democrat Party from 1979 to 1982, and Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand, deputy prime minister from 1980 to 1983. He died at the age of 101 on 3 March 2016, a couple of months shy of his 102nd birthday.

Early life

Thanat was born in Bangkok and came from a Thai Chinese family. His father, Phraya Phiphaksa Satayathipatai (Po Khoman) was one of Siam's first law school graduates and a judge on the Supreme Court of Thailand. Thanat attended Assumption College (Thailand), Assumption College in Bangkok, before he went to France, graduating from a Bordeaux ''Secondary education in France, lycée''. Supplied with a scholarship from the Thai foreign ministry, he continued his studies in Bordeaux and Paris, earning degrees from the Institute of Higher International Studies (IHEI) and Sciences Po in 1939, as well as a doctor of law degree from the University of Paris in 1940.

Diplomatic career

After his return to Thailand, Thanat was obliged to join the diplomatic service, as the foreign ministry had financed his studies. During World War II he was stationed as a second secretary at the Thai embassy in Tokyo from 1941 to 1943. During this time, the Thai-Japanese agreement of 1942 was concluded, allowing Japanese troops to march through Thailand and use it as a base for attacks on British Burma and British Malaya, Malaya and leading to Thailand's entry into the war on the Axis side. However, Thanat disagreed with what was perceived as a virtual Japanese occupation of Thailand and joined the ''Free Thai Movement, Seri Thai'' ("Free Thai") resistance movement that was supported by the British Force 136 and the American Office of Strategic Services, OSS. In February 1945, he was a member of a secret delegation to the Allied South East Asia Command in Kandy, Ceylon.

After the Second World War, he held a number of diplomatic posts, including ''chargé d'affaires'' at the Thai embassies in Washington, D.C. and Delhi. In 1950 he was chosen as the chairman of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, UN Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East (ECAFE) in New York City. From 1952 to 1957 he served as the deputy to the Permanent Representative from Thailand to the United Nations. In 1957 he was promoted to the post of the Ambassador of Thailand to the United States.

Political career

On 10 February 1959, he was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand in the government of authoritarian Prime Minister Sarit Thanarat. His major contribution was in promoting regional reconciliation and cooperation in Southeast Asia. He was a participant in Southeast Asia Treaty Organization, SEATO talks in 1961. In March 1962 he signed a joint communiqué with United States Secretary of State Dean Rusk in which the United States promised Thailand support and defense against potential communist aggression. Despite being only an informal protocol, it was celebrated in Thailand as a bilateral pact of the two countries, dubbed the Thanat–Rusk Communiqué.

In the 1960s Thanat played a key role in mediating between Indonesia and Malaysia. The choice of Bangkok as the founding place of the ASEAN, Association of Southeast Asian Nations on 8 August 1967 was an expression of respect for his active role in the formation of this institution. On 17 November 1971 he resigned his post after a coup d'état.

After his resignation as foreign minister, Thanat entered national politics in 1979 and served as chairman of the Democrat Party (Thailand), Democrat Party until 1982. Between 1980 and 1982 he was also deputy prime minister in the government of Prem Tinsulanonda. In 1982 he retired from political life. He celebrated his 100th birthday in 2014. His wife, Molee, is a maternal granddaughter of Tan Kim Ching.

Honours

* 1968 - Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Chula Chom Klaoราชกิจจานุเบกษา
แจ้งความสำนักคณะรัฐมนตรี เรื่อง พระราชทานเครื่องราชอิสริยาภรณ์
เล่ม ๗๕, ตอน ๓๙ ง, ๒๐ พฤษภาคม พ.ศ. ๒๕๑๑
* 1968 - Knight Grand Cordon of the Order of the White Elephant
* 1960 - Knight Grand Cordon of the Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand
* 1966 - Dushdi Mala Medal, Dushdi Mala - Medal for Distinguished Services in Arts and Sciences (Silpa Vidhya)
* 1942 - Medal for Service in the Interior - Indochina
* 1963 - Border Service Medal
* 1966 - Chakrabarti Mala Medal
* 1960 - King Rama IX Royal Cypher Medal of King Rama X, Royal Cypher Medal 2nd

Foreign honours

* :

1949 - Special Grand Cordon of the Order of Brilliant Star

1963 - Purple Grand Cordon of the Order of Brilliant Star

* :

1961 - Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George (GCMG)

* :

1961 - Grand Cross 1st Class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany

* :

1961 - Grand Cross of the Order of Christ (Portugal), Order of Christ

* :

1961 - Grand Cross of the Order of the Dannebrog

*

1961 - Knight 1st Class of the Order of St. Olav

*

1961 - Commander Grand Cross of the Order of the Polar Star

*

1961 - Knight Grand Cross with Collar of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic

* :

1961 - Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Pope Pius IX

*

1961 - Grand Cordon of the Order of Leopold (Belgium), Ordre de Leopold

* :

1961 - Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour

* :

1961 - Grand Cross of the Order of the Oak Crown

* :
1962 - Honorary Grand Commander of the Order of the Defender of the Realm
* :

1963 - Grand Cordon 1st Class of the Order of the Rising Sun

* Kingdom of Greece, Greece:

1963 - Grand Cross of the Royal Order of George I

*

1964 - Exceptional class of the Kim Khánh, Order of Kim Khanh

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1966 - Recipient of the Order of Service Merit (1st class)

* :

??? - Grand Collar of the Order of Lakandula

??? - Grand Cross of the Order of Sikatuna

* Ethiopian Empire, Ethiopia:

??? - Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Menelik II
*:
??? - Grand Cross of the Order of the Liberator General San Martín
*:
??? - Grand Star of the Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria
*:
??? - Grand Cross of the Order of the Southern Cross
*:
??? - Sash of the Order of the Aztec Eagle
*:
??? - Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic

See also

*Grand Marshals of the Rose Parade

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Khoman, Thanat
Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Thailand, Thanat Khoman
Deputy Prime Ministers of Thailand, Thanat Khoman
Ambassadors of Thailand to the United States, Thanat Khoman
Recipients of the Dushdi Mala Medal, Pin of Arts and Science, Thanat Khoman
Thai centenarians, Thanat Khoman
Democrat Party (Thailand) politicians, Thanat Khoman
Leaders of the Democrat Party (Thailand), Thanat Khoman
Men centenarians
Thai people of Chinese descent, Thanat Khoman

Grand Croix of the Légion d'honneur
Recipients of the Order of the Liberator General San Martin
Recipients of the Grand Decoration with Sash for Services to the Republic of Austria
Grand Crosses of the Order of the Dannebrog
Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Orange-Nassau
Grand Crosses 1st class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
Grand Crosses of the Order of George I
Grand Crosses of the Order of Christ (Portugal)
Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic
Grand Cordons of the Order of the Rising Sun
Recipients of the Order of Isabella the Catholic
Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Pope Pius IX
Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George
1914 births
2016 deaths
Thai diplomats, Thanat Khoman
Grand Collars of the Order of Lakandula
University of Bordeaux alumni
Members of the International Law Commission
Recipients of orders, decorations, and medals of Ethiopia