Decisive Action Training Environment: Khorathidin

Origin of the DATE Pacific Region 

 

In 2018, the U.S. Army Chief of Staff recognized the necessity of broadening DATE to encompass additional regions and representative threats. For this expansion effort, allies from the British Army, the Australian Defence Force, the New Zealand Defence Force, and the Canadian Armed Forces collaborated to develop three new DATE regions: Africa, Europe, and the Pacific. The result of this multinational effort was a training tool that not only met U.S. Army requirements but an expanded tool that supports the training needs of other components within the Department of Defense and partner militaries.  

  

Initially, the DATE-Pacific region had only five composite countries overlayed onto the island groups of Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao in the Philippines, as well as the northern portion of the island of Borneo. The five composite countries represented five diverse political systems found within the Pacific region.  

 

As Army priorities shifted over the years, the requirements for training scenarios in the Pacific swung from enabling peninsular fights to countering the pacing threat; although DATE’s flexibility as a training aid allowed scenario developers to adapt the existing five countries to meet emerging needs, an update to the DATE-Pacific region was needed to fully support the new focus. To support Army professional military education (PME) needs, DATE-Pacific needed to expand geographically and be able to support a broader range of scenarios. As a result, the region was expanded to include the Southeast Asian mainland, and four new composite countries were created to represent four archetypes of potential regional actors. The extended OE was rebranded as “DATE Indo-Pacific” and includes the country Khorathidin.  

 

Khorathidin plays an important role in Army PME scenarios, in which it is friendly to the United States. In these scenarios, the United States is called to Khorathidin’s aid after an invasion from the Olvana. This article will introduce DATE Indo-Pacific and dive deep into the Khorathidin OE to support familiarization for scenario developers and Soldiers who will be immersed in the OE in courses throughout PME. 

 

 

DATE Indo-Pacific 

 

DATE Indo-Pacific is the largest and most geographically diverse OE within DATE. DATE Indo-Pacific incorporates islands, jungles, deserts, mountains, mega-cities, and more, from the Himalayas to island formations in the South China Sea. 

 

DATE Indo-Pacific has a history of prolonged political and military instability and conflict, including ethnic, political, and religious factionalism. The region is centered on maritime concerns and is dominated by Olvana’s military and economy. North Torbia threatens the entire area with nuclear ICBM ambitions. Himaldesh asserts itself as a global player and alternative to Olvana, while Sungzon is a foil to the latter’s maritime dominance. Many smaller nations seek international partnerships to advance their development and provide stability. Belesia, Gabal, Khorathidin, and Bagansait all vacillate between rule by military juntas and democratically elected governments. Complicating these regional dynamics are outside actors who grow increasingly involved in the economies. DATE Indo-Pacific thus represents an environment where highly localized conflict can spill over into widespread unrest or general war. 

 

Khorathidin 

 

The Kingdom of Khorathidin is a Southeast Asian nation nestled on the Mainland Peninsula between Sungzon and Bagansait. Its capital is the port city of Bangkok. The official demonym for citizens is Khorathidini or Khor, but most citizens identify with one of the many ethnicities of this diverse and densely populated nation. 

Figure 1: Political boundaries created by U.S. Army TRADOC

 

PMESII-PT Overview 

 

Political: Khorathidin has been beset by political turmoil over the past six decades. The political trend has been toward increased democratization; however, on multiple occasions, the military has deposed the civilian-led government and taken steps to inhibit further democratization. The last coup occurred in 2014, but elections quickly followed, and the country is once again civilian-led and progressing toward further democratization. 

 

Khorathidin encompasses the ancient Kingdom of Siam, historically populated by Khmer and Lao peoples. The historical name for Khorathidin is Siam, but the ethnonym for the predominant people is Khor-Khor, or more simply, Khor. The other two large peoples are Khmer (sometimes spelled Khymer) and Lao, or Laotian. 

 

Khorathidin is the only Southeast Asian nation that the West has never colonized. France colonized the historic regions of the Laotian and Khmer in the 1600s. The French departed in the 1960s during the neighboring Sungzon conflict when fighting spilled into the Laotian and Khmer region. The aftermath left the nation in turmoil. The Khmer and Laotian regions sought the protective governance of Khorathidin, and Khorathidin annexed those regions through a referendum in 1970. The effects of this postcolonial aftermath and the neighboring Sungzon conflict remain in the ethnic Laotian and Khmer regions in the form of a depressed economy and localized corruption. 

 

Military: The Royal Khorathidin Military Forces (RKMF) have undergone significant changes in recent years. The government has taken steps to reduce the army’s size while maintaining a force structure that supports the rapid mobilization of the reserve forces. This self-imposed deficit was done to allow for modernization and limit the military’s ability to grow large enough for a potential coup. The Khorathidin military is focused on border security and internal security. Conscription is still used to fill the military ranks. Serving in the armed forces is considered a national duty and is enshrined in the Constitution. Despite its reduced size, RKMF has increased its participation in military exercises with other democratic nations. This includes U.S. and U.N. exercises, disaster relief, and peacekeeping operations. Khorathidin’s armed forces will continue modernizing by focusing on interoperability with Western countries while maintaining its internal and border security efforts. 

 

Economic: Khorathidin has experienced remarkable economic development over the past four decades. It has rapidly transitioned from a low-income to an upper-middle-income country. Khorathidin is ranked the 23rd largest economy in the world in terms of GDP and 84th in per capita income. This per capita ranking is primarily due to a transitioning labor force with jobs migrating from agriculture into the skilled labor markets, such as automotive assembly and integrated circuits. Khorathidin’s economy is projected to sustain growth, leading to increased employment and reduced poverty. This growth has occurred simultaneously across many social and economic areas. These include tourism, education, universal health care, and a retirement system comparable to the U.S. Social Security system. The Khorathidin economy is expected to adapt and shift more resources from agriculture to industry. The technology sector is anticipated to expand by 14 percent annually in the near term. Overall, Khorathidin is expected to remain the region’s socioeconomic leader. 

 

Social: Khor social structure is rooted deeply in the Theravada Buddhist culture it shares with other Southeast Asian countries. Respect for elders, ancestors, and social courtesies is instilled at an early age, as is the hierarchical nature of families and decisionmaking. This identity permeates all layers of social constructs, including government authority. The Khorathidin government recognizes over 60 ethnicities. By far, the largest group identifies as Khor. 

 

Information: Khorathidin is the most advanced country among the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). It has rolled out 5G technology, and digitalization has increased in the daily lives of the average consumer. This transition arose from the growing penetration rates of the internet and smartphones in the country. The “Khorathidin 4.0” economic model emphasizes digitalization as part of the country’s development and has led many sectors to adapt to this plan. 

 

Infrastructure: Located at the center of mainland Southeast Asia, Khorathidin’s total surface area is approximately 198,120 square miles (513,128 square kilometers), with a population of almost 70 million. The infrastructure across Khorathidin has been a focus for investment over the past several decades and will be a critical factor in future economic growth. However, Khorathidin is urbanizing, and there is an increasing divide in the quality of infrastructure between urban and rural areas. And despite the significant investment in its infrastructure, Khorathidin still faces an infrastructure gap. Estimates indicate that if the investment rate is not accelerated, the country could face an economic spending gap of $100 billion within the next 20 years. 

 

Physical: Khorathidin’s terrain is a diverse ecosystem with high mountains to the north, a central plain, dense forests, and a northwestern upland plateau. A long chain of mountains extends from the far north along the western border with Bagansait, down through the isthmus and to the Malay Peninsula. The central plain is a lowland area created by the country’s principal river system, the Chao Phraya River, and its tributaries, which feed into the delta and the Bay of Bangkok. In the northeastern part of the country, the Khorat Plateau, a region of gently rolling low hills and shallow lakes, drains into the Mun River, part of the Mekong River system. The Mekong River flows along the northeastern border, empties into the South China Sea, and includes a series of canals and dams. The Chao Phraya and Mekong systems are central to Khorathidin’s economy, supporting rice cultivation and providing waterways for transporting goods and people. The features of the Malay Peninsula include long coastlines, offshore islands, and mangrove swamps. 

 

Time: Khorathidin does not observe daylight saving time and shares the same time zone with Bagansait, Sungzon, Western Olvana and Southeastern portions of Himaldesh (UTC+07:00); UTC is used all year round. The Buddhist religion has created a relaxed and patient attitude in Khorathidin that has influenced its citizen’s approach to time. Business meetings are formal, but courteous and relaxed. 

 

Force Structure Overview 

 

Army: The Royal Khorathidin Army (RKA) comprises approximately 245,000 troops. The RKA is organized into four army regional commands, as well as a medical department, an aviation division, and a special warfare command. RKA tactical units consist of nine infantry divisions (including 16 tank battalions), one armored division, three cavalry divisions (light armored divisions), a developmental internal security division, and one special operations command. The Central Army Regional Command is headquartered in Bangkok. It consists of four infantry divisions, a cavalry division, and various specialty units such as a support command and units focused on artillery, engineering, and long-range reconnaissance. The Eastern Army Regional Command is structured similarly but contains only two infantry divisions. The Northern Army Regional Command consists of two infantry divisions, a cavalry division, and various specialty units such as a support command and units focused on artillery, engineering, and a long-range reconnaissance. The Southern Army Regional Command mirrors its northern counterpart with two infantry divisions, a cavalry division, and the same various specialty units.  

Figure 2: Khorathidin RKA graphic created by U.S. Army TRADOC 

Maritime: The Royal Khorathidin Navy (RKN) consists of 71,000 active personnel (53,000 Navy personnel, 18,000 Marine Infantry) and 130 ships. It is organized into three tactical fleets: the Western Sea Fleet, the Northern Gulf Fleet, and the Southern Gulf Fleet. These fleets include frigates, fast–attack craft armed with surface-to-surface missiles, large coastal patrol craft, minelayers, minesweepers, and landing craft. The RKN also has one air and coastal defense command, an aircraft carrier, two air wings, and a medical command.

Figure 3: Khorathidin RKN graphic created by U.S. Army TRADOC 

 

Air Force: The Royal Khorathidin Air Force (RKAF) comprises approximately 44,000 personnel and an estimated 215 aerial platforms. These platforms include attack, transport, and rotary-wing aircraft. The RKAF also maintains an unknown number of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for reconnaissance. The total number of UAVs is thought to be more than 30. The RKAF is organized into four districts aligned with the regional armies (Northern, Eastern, Central, and Southern).  The air force also contains a special purpose airborne battalion, ISR/UAV command, training and support command, search and rescue unit, and a medical battalion. 

 

Figure 4: Khorathidin graphic created by U.S. Army TRADOC

 

DATE provides the U.S. Army training community with a detailed description of the OE characteristics and conditions found in multiple regions around the globe: Africa, Eurasia, the Indo-Pacific, and the Arctic and Antarctic polar regions. DATE provides trainers and exercise developers with a foundational narrative that can be used as is or adapted to fit the training needs of a specific scenario. 

 

Khorathidin was developed based on the real-world OE and threat conditions validated by the Intelligence Community. The design of Khorathidin complies with Army Regulation AR 350-2 by avoiding direct references to specific countries, governmental policies, military orders of battle, or governmental structures. However, it maintains a level of intelligence-informed realism to create compelling training scenarios. 

 

In summary, DATE is an ever-changing world that keeps pace with shifting Army, joint, and partner training requirements. The DATE Indo-Pacific expansion helps address the training needs of the Army, other U.S. military services, and partner militaries. The expanded and more realistic DATE Indo-Pacific, heavily influenced by training requirements, ultimately supports the Army’s mission to be ready to fight and win anywhere in the world. 

 

Useful links for DATE material:  

 

DATE on ODIN (Centralized location for DATE content)  

DATE Landing Zone (for additional supporting materials)  

ODIN Feedback Tool (to contact the TRADOC team)