Sutin listens to doctoral theses on geopolitical shifts at academic forum

The forum, held at 9am on Saturday, was organised by doctoral students specialising in social, business, and political leadership at the university’s College of Social Innovation.

Welcoming Sutin to the event were the university’s president Asst Prof Attawit Ourairat and head of the College of Social Innovation, Assoc Prof Suriya Isarakat.

Together, they listened to research presentations delivered by doctoral students, which focused on the intersection of global geopolitics and Thailand’s interests in three key provinces, namely Mukdahan, Phuket and Chiang Rai.

In a bid to gather knowledge before assuming his role, Sutin sought to connect with different individuals to discern whether the definitions of security were in harmony or at odds with the government’s aims. He also sought insights from the National Security Council, which outlined security challenges across nine fronts, namely: 

• Social conflicts

• Distrust in political institutions

• Environmental imbalances

• Epidemics

• Situation in the deep South

• Transnational crime and terrorism

• Labour and refugees

• Drugs

• Poverty

This academic perspective was seen to be in line with the Defence Ministry’s commitment to reducing arms procurement, Sutin said. 

He also said that Thailand’s purchase of submarines will be dealt with a strategic approach, underscoring the importance of only acquiring submarines when it is absolutely necessary. 

In case negotiations with Chinese suppliers fall through, the ministry remains open to exploring alternatives, such as investing in surface ships, he added. The submarine issue predates Sutin.

Sutin also said that a re-evaluation of negotiations involving fertilizer imports from China as a cost-effective solution for farmers is also on the table.