US warship at Laem Chabang

US warship at Laem Chabang - Bangkok Post, April 21, 2006
The USS Abraham Lincoln is the first aircraft carrier to dock at Laem Chabang, one of the few ports in Asia able to berth the nuclear-powered warship. The ship arrived at the port yesterday. Its crew of almost 6,000 will be allowed a five-day break in Pattaya...
Pattaya Mayor Niran Watanasatorn said the stopover means a welcome boost for tourism. The crew would pump hundreds of millions of baht into the local economy.
A source at the Supreme Command yesterday said that Indonesia will join next month's annual Cobra Gold military exercise as a participant for the first time.
Indonesia, a long-time observer, will replace the Philippines in the multi-national military exercise, scheduled from May 16 to 26. The source said it is a demand of the US and Thailand that the drill concentrates on anti-terrorism and intelligence network operations.
A field exercise involving full-scale combat operations will be organised in Lop Buri, which is under the First Army, and a command centre will be set up at the Chulachomklao Royal Military Academy in Nakhon Nayok. The US has decided to reduce its troop numbers from 30,000 to 10,000 for this year's exercise, due to the situation in Iraq.