SSU Forum/Tobunken Seminar “Thai Perceptions of the International Order since the Pre-Modern Era: Shaping and Shifting Its Relations with China, Japan, and the US into the 21st Century”

  • Date：
    Tue, Jul 15, 2025
  • Time：
    15:00-17:00
  • Location：
    (Online) Zoom Webinar
    (In person) Main Conference Room, Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia, UTokyo
    MAP for the venue in person
  • Hosts：

    *Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia, the University of Tokyo
    *Security Studies Unit, Institute for Future Initiatives, the University of Tokyo

  • Language：

    English

  • Registration：

    Please be sure to sign up from registration form below.

    【Online】Registration Form
    *Zoom link will be delivered the day before the event.
    【In person】Registration Form

    *This event was organized by JSPS Project “The Historical Process of Development of the East Asian International Order: The Connection of Non-Western International Relations Theory and Area Studies”.

    *The Institute for Future Initiatives (IFI) and Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia collect personal information in order to provide you with the event URL and information about our current and future activities.  Your personal information will not be disclosed to any third party.

Abstract

This lecture traces the historical development of Thailand’s understanding of regional and international order since the pre-modern era, examining how Thailand has adapted to changing orders, particularly from the postwar period onward. It explores Thailand’s evolving perceptions of Asia and the West, particularly China, the US, and Japan through tributary systems, colonial encounters, and modern geopolitics. The lecture also analyzes how Thailand navigates today’s US-China rivalry, responds to Trump 2.0’s disruptions to the current order, and suggests Japan’s role in maintaining liberal international order.

Panelists

Speaker: Kitti Prasirtsuk, Professor of Political Science, Thammasat University
Discussant 1: Pattajit Tangsinmunkong, Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Information Studies and Institute of Advanced Studies on Asia, the University of Tokyo
Discussant 2 & Moderator: Ryo Sahashi, Professor, Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia, the University of Tokyo