Interviews | Diplomacy | Southeast Asia

The Pitfalls of Thailand’s ‘Bamboo Diplomacy’

“Its flexibility allows Thai policymakers to justify different, and sometimes contradictory, strategies under the same label.”

An equestrian statue of Thailand’s King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) in Bangkok, Thailand.

Thailand has long prided itself on its foreign policy acumen and its status as the only nation in Southeast Asia that avoided colonization by the West. At the center of this is the notion of “bamboo diplomacy” – a form of diplomacy that prioritizes pragmatism and flexibility in pursuit of the national interest. However, in a recent article, Pongkwan Sawasdipakdi argued that memories of past Thai diplomatic successes had become a trap, that an idealized vision of its own past had the potential to restrict the country’s foreign policy – in particular, its response to the growing

Pongkwan, a lecturer in international relations at Thammasat University in Bangkok, spoke to The Diplomat’s Sebastian Strangio about the origins of “bamboo diplomacy,” and how history informs Thailand’s present diplomatic behavior, and the potential for the country to become trapped by its own past successes.

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Thailand has long prided itself on its foreign policy acumen and its status as the only nation in Southeast Asia that avoided colonization by the West. At the center of this is the notion of “bamboo diplomacy” – a form of diplomacy that prioritizes pragmatism and flexibility in pursuit of the national interest. However, in a recent article, Pongkwan Sawasdipakdi argued that memories of past Thai diplomatic successes had become a trap, that an idealized vision of its own past had the potential to restrict the country’s foreign policy – in particular, its response to the growing

Pongkwan, a lecturer in international relations at Thammasat University in Bangkok, spoke to The Diplomat’s Sebastian Strangio about the origins of “bamboo diplomacy,” and how history informs Thailand’s present diplomatic behavior, and the potential for the country to become trapped by its own past successes.

To begin with, what are the main principles of “bamboo diplomacy”? To what extent does it even constitute a coherent doctrine?

Bamboo diplomacy draws on the analogy of bamboo bending with the wind. Rather than standing rigidly against strong winds and risking being broken, bamboo survives by adapting to changing conditions. Applied to foreign policy, the analogy emphasizes prudence, flexibility, and the ability to gauge the direction of great power competition before committing to a particular course of action.

In the language of modern international relations, bamboo diplomacy can encompass both bandwagoning and hedging, depending on the circumstances. When the winds blow strongly in one direction, Thailand may find it necessary to align itself with the dominant power. When the balance of power is less clear, Thailand may instead hedge by maintaining relations with competing powers and avoiding firm........

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