Secretary of Defense Spokesperson Cmdr. Gary Ross provided the following readout:
Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis met June 3 with Thailand's Deputy Minister of Defense General Udomdej Sitabutr on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, a major annual forum for key leaders in the Asia-Pacific region, to discuss security challenges and opportunities.
The two officials reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen the 184-year-old U.S.-Thai alliance, and exchanged views on regional and bilateral security issues.
They reviewed the broad range of U.S.-Thai defense cooperation and Thailand's continuing contributions to regional security. The Secretary and General Udomdej also discussed ways to continue strengthening the defense trade relationship.
Secretary Mattis invited General Udomdej to visit Washington, and extended an invitation to Defense Minister Prawit Wongsuwan to visit as well.