The Art of Thai Diplomacy: Parables of Alliance

This paper argues that a pragmatist theory of international relations, combined with parables of alliance formation from local proverbs and literary classics, best explains the art of Thai diplomacy from a historical perspective. Notably avoiding Western colonization, the Thais have enjoyed relative sovereignty and independence throughout their history. Rather than balancing, bandwagoning, or hedging, our study finds that Thailand has deliberately leveraged asymmetrical partnerships between often-opposed great powers and more symmetrical partnerships with less powerful states and multilateral organizations in order to maintain its physical and identity-based ontological security. We draw our empirical evidence from four historical periods: the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, World War II, the Cold War, and the post-Cold War modern era. Our findings can be applied to other Southeast Asian states and their own parables of alliance. 

泰国的外交艺术：同盟的寓言故事

关键词：存在论意义上的安全；实用主义；利用杠杆；同盟；泰国外交。

本论文提出理论认为将一种实用主义的国际关系理论与本土谚语和文学经典中有关结盟的寓言故事相结合，可以从历史角度最好地诠释泰国的外交艺术。纵观历史,泰国始终享有相对的主权和独立，特别是避免了被西方所殖民。我们的研究发现泰国并非采取均势、追随或者对冲策略，而是刻意利用了与通常相互对立的大国之间不对称的伙伴关系以及与较弱国家和多边组织之间的更对称的伙伴关系为杠杆，来维护其实体的以及以认同为基础的存在论意义上的安全。我们利用了四个历史时期的经验证据：19世纪和20世纪初期、二战、冷战以及后冷战的现代时期。我们的研究发现也可以应用于其他东南亚国家和他们自己的结盟寓言故事。

Translated by Li Guo