with the United States), intelligence cooperation, and occasional Thai contributions to U.S. military campaigns overseas. Since 2001, though, Thailand has played a more important role in facilitating U.S. military reach in the region, and in 2003 it was designated a “major non-NATO ally” like the Philippines. U.S. aircraft were
allowed to fly combat missions from bases in Thailand during the Afghanistan and Iraq campaigns, and old Vietnam War–era U.S. air and naval bases were reopened to allow the United States to preposition military equipment for forward deployment operations.