THE Royal Thai Navy received a new warning from the Joint United States Military Advisory Group Thailand over the salvage operations of US-built HTMS Sukhothai in partnership with a contractor from China.
The vessel which sank in the Gulf of Thailand on December 18, 2022, killed twenty-four of the 106 crew onboard.
Five other crew members who were declared missing were presumed dead.
As revealed by a Move Forward MP, the Joint United States Military Advisory Group Thailand contacted Thai officials twice, with the latest on December 1, 2023, to get information on how to recover the sunk vessel but said it did not receive a response.
The U.S. security agency warned the Thai navy of its obligation to seek approval from the US government in finding a contractor to retrieve the sunk vessel.
The U.S. agency gave the warning amid reports that Thailand chose a Chinese company to help salvage the warship after winning a bid worth 199 million baht.
The Royal Thai Navy has yet to respond to the concerns of the United States in finding a Chinese contractor to help Thailand salvage the warship.
