US holds war games in Thailand despite coup

SATTAHIP, Thailand, May 8 (Reuters) Thailand and the United States kicked off their annual ''Cobra Gold'' war games today despite Washington's misgivings about September's military coup, which deposed elected Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Washington's decision to suspend 24 million dollars of military aid because of laws restricting funding to countries that undergo coups had led to speculation it might cancel the exercises with one of its strongest southeast Asian allies.

US deputy ambassador Alexander Arvizu made no allusion to the Sept 19 putsch in opening remarks for the annual operations, which also include the Singaporean, Indonesian, and Japanese military.

''For a quarter century, Cobra Gold has been the most visible symbol of US and Thai military cooperation,'' Arvizu said in a statement.

The exercises take place in the province of Chon Buri, east of Bangkok, where the United States built up a massive military presence during the Vietnam War.

The event has evolved from an exclusively Thai-US exercise to include many other countries from the region. Its focus has also shifted towards humanitarian and disaster relief operations, such as after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

REUTERS RJ DS1115