Cobra Gold Exercise Officially Concludes

On Friday (10 March), more than 600 soldiers from five nations joined forces to engage in a military exercise in Lopburi province, marking the completion of this year’s Cobra Gold military exercise.

According to a Royal Thai Armed Forces news release, 609 military troops from Thailand, the United States, Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia participated in the “combined weapons live fire exercise” at the Artillery Center in Lopburi’s Phatthana Nikhom district. Drills such as strategic parachuting, sniping, aerial strikes, artillery preparation, and medical evacuations were part of the exercise, which also included the employment of F-16 jet fighters, BTR armored vehicles, AH-64E Apache helicopters, and HIMARS multiple launch rocket launchers.

General Chalermphon Srisawasdi, Chief of Defense Forces of the Royal Thai Armed Forces, and Major-General Stephen Smith, commander of the United States 7th Infantry Division, jointly presided over the concluding ceremony. Military commanders from Cobra Gold nations also attended the gathering.

The 2023 Cobra Gold began on February 28th at the Royal Thai Naval Air Station in Rayong province, and military troops from 30 nations participated. This year’s exercise attracted 7,394 persons, with the bulk of participants coming from the United States.

Cobra Gold is an annual event co-hosted in Thailand by the Royal Thai Armed Forces and the United States Indo-Pacific Command. The event intends to promote military knowledge, doctrine, and technology exchange, as well as offer experience for Thai and ally troops in combined and multilateral operations.