Chaiseri Exports 15 First Win 4x4 to Bhutan

22 November 2021

A fleet of 15 locally made armoured multi-purpose vehicles is prepared for a hand-over ceremony to the Bhutanese government (photo : Bangkok Post)

'Unwanted' vehicles to be used in UN mission

A fleet of 15 locally made armoured vehicles was handed over to Bhutan on Friday amid criticism the Thai military is not interested in using domestically made military equipment.

Chaichan Changmongkol, deputy minister of defence, presided over the handing over of 15 First Win 4x4 vehicles made by Chaiseri Metal & Rubber Co to the Bhutanese government during a ceremony at the permanent secretary for defence's office in Nonthaburi.

Kinzang Dorji, ambassador of Bhutan, was present at the ceremony. The vehicles will reportedly be used during a United Nation's peacekeeping mission in the Central African Republic next month.

During the ceremony, Gen Chaichan said Thailand and Bhutan have maintained good relations, adding the handover of the locally made vehicles means that Thailand will also be involved in the UN mission.

Chaiseri First Win 4x4 for Bhutan (photo : Sompong Nondhasa)

He said the government has a policy to develop the local defence industry to achieve self-reliance in this sector and export locally made military equipment.

Gen Worakiat Rattananont, permanent secretary for defence, said the Bhutanese government decided to buy the armoured vehicles from the company because it was confident in the quality of the products and the company's capabilities, adding they come with an affordable price tag.

According to a source, the 15 vehicles cost 225 million baht in total or about 15 million baht each.

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