1 ISSUE: 2019 No. 76 ISSN 2335-6677 RESEARCHERS AT ISEAS – YUSOF ISHAK INSTITUTE ANALYSE CURRENT EVENTS Singapore | 24 September 2019 Thailand’s Perennial Kra Canal Project: Pros, Cons and Potential Game Changers Ian Storey* EXECUTIVE SUMMARY • The pros and cons of constructing a canal across the Isthmus of Kra have been debated for centuries: proponents stress economic and strategic benefits, while critics argue that it is too costly and commercially unviable. • Since the 2014 coup in Bangkok, advocates of the canal have highlighted three potential game changers: the new Thai monarch, China’s Belt and Road Initiative and Thailand’s 20-year National Strategy. • Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha has responded cautiously to the proposal, as he must consider complex domestic, economic and geopolitical factors. • Because of political uncertainties in Thailand, lack of royal support and the global economic slowdown, construction of a Kra canal remains a distant prospect. * Ian Storey is Senior Fellow and Editor of Contemporary Southeast Asia at the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute