734 Chapter 6
220 FRANCE/800 THAILANDMID#196
Dispute Number: 196
Date(s): February 4, 1893 to October 3, 1893
Participants: 220 France/200 United Kingdom, 800 Thailand
Outcome (and Settlement): Victory for side A (Imposed)
Fatalities: >999 deaths
Narrative: The Franco-Siamese War was fought between the Third French Republic
and Siam in 1893. Siam was unique in the history of southeast Asia for being able
to resist pressure from the European states and maintain its autonomy. However, that
did not prevent European powers such as the British and the French from trying to
maximize their presence in the area. The French in particular were active in coercing
Siam to add to its colony of French Indochina.
The French demanded all Siamese territories east of the Mekong River (present-
day Laos). Siam refused, and attempts to coerce compliance out of Siam in the
following months ultimately led to war. Siamese defeat was swift, in large part
because the British would not assist Siam. A treaty signed on October 3, 1893,
ended the war. The French were given the maximum of their demands on Siam:
(1) the surrender of all Cambodian territory on the east bank of the lower Mekong,
(2) the exclusive right to police the Mekong River, (3) total withdrawal of Siam
from the vicinity of the designated territories, creating a 25-kilometers demilita-
rized zone west of the Mekong River, (4) the right of Cambodians living on the
west bank of the Mekong River to register as French citizens, and 5) the occupa-
tion of Battambang and Cantaboon to guarantee Siam holds to the terms of the
treaty. France had effectively detached all the territory known now as Laos and
added that territory to French Indochina.
Coding changes: Outcome changed from Victory for side A.
MID#613
Dispute Number: 613
Date(s): August 16, 1940 to January 28, 1941
Participants: 800 Thailand/220 France
Outcome (and Settlement): Victory for side A (Imposed)
Fatalities: >999 deaths
Narrative: Thailand, unlike the rest of southeast Asia, was independent and able to
adequately resist pressures from foreign powers for empire. France was the biggest
nemesis in the region via French Indochina. The two had clashes through the end of
the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century, resulting in Siamese (Thai) con-
cessions to France. World War II changed that relationship. Thailand was led by a