🇺🇸🇹🇭 Two sailors from the USS Abraham Lincoln were restricted to the ship after a drunken fight near Pattaya’s Walking Street. Thai police called it a small scuffle. No charges were filed. After 286 days at sea, two guys arguing outside a bar is the scandal. Sailors have been doing this in Pattaya since Vietnam. The surprise is that ONLY 2 got caught. Writer: Jamie

Thailand: A United Nations of Grey by @voranai From Chiang Mai to Bangkok’s Huai Khwang district, eastward to Pattaya (the Sodom and Gomorrah by the sea), and south to Phuket, Phang-nga and Samui: Is Thailand becoming, or has it already become, a hub for international criminals and a treasure chest for grey capital? The color grey has become shorthand for criminality and corruption. And the grey comes in every nationality: Chinese, Israeli, British, French, American, German, Indian and many others. Hence, a United Nations of Greyness. But there is an inconvenient truth. Foreign grey cannot thrive in Thailand without local grey to accommodate it, facilitate it and profit from it. Somebody locally has to provide the companies, nominees, licenses, documents, property, bank accounts, political connections and protection — for a taste in return, of course. Foreign grey exploits the system. Local grey enables the system. Welcome to the Land of Smiles. Except the average Thai isn’t smiling anymore. Online gambling. Scam networks. Money laundering. Nominee businesses. Illegal drugs. Illegal casinos. Criminal proceeds transformed into hotels, restaurants, property and other seemingly legitimate investments. Fasttrack citizenships for the right money and the right connection. Public anger is growing. Social pressure is mounting. And the government is finally acting. In early August 2026, authorities launched “Operation Huai Khwang Integration”, a crackdown on suspected money-laundering networks, nominee structures and illegal businesses in the Bangkok district. Meanwhile in Phuket, authorities target what has been described as “grey Israeli capital” amid allegations of intimidation, tensions with local residents and foreign influence over tourism businesses through nominee arrangements. Ask an ordinary Thai what they think of these crackdowns, and one popular answer may be: “Yeah, sure. It’s all for show (la-korn, TV drama).” Why such cynicism? Meet Tuhao Few names fan the hopes and dreams of “grey aspiration” more than Chaiyanat “Tuhao” Kornchayanan, a Chinese-born businessman who acquired Thai citizenship and built an extensive network of businesses and relationships in Thailand. His name became synonymous with Thailand’s so-called Chinese grey capital after the 2022 police raid on the Jinling nightclub in Bangkok. Investigators uncovered drugs and cash and subsequently pursued allegations involving drug trafficking, money laundering, nominee companies, and the movement of criminal proceeds into legitimate businesses and property. Then came an alleged leaked audio recording attributed to Tuhao: “I’ve got a lot of money, understand? If this doesn’t end, I’ll really shoot you. I have a gun. Just look at Phuket — could they arrest me? If you have money, you can do anything. Thai people have died too. You can even go to prison. Believe me?” Those words suggest confidence not just in one’s wealth, but in a system washed in grey — a system that can be bought and sold. Tuhao’s subsequent legal battles only reinforced public skepticism. Citing insufficient evidence, the court dismissed serious allegations including transnational organized crime, conspiracy, money laundering and drug-related offences. He still faces lesser charges, such as illegal gambling. Incidentally, his former Thai wife was a police major, while her family includes senior police generals. Which, of course, has nothing to do with the case. No, really. From Chinese grey capital to Israeli grey capital, from European and American operators to Indian and other foreign networks, it would take the naïveté of a fairy-tale princess dancing with unicorns in a lavender field to believe that foreign criminal capital can exist without local assistance. It takes two to tango, or in this case, do the Dirty Dancing, not starring Patrick Swayze.  Foreign grey is the symptom. Local grey is the disease.

The USS Abraham Lincoln docked for a rest stop in Thailand, 286 days after its deployment which included a long tour in the Middle East. @PJHeijmans visited the port city of Pattaya and spoke to sailors who were relieved to disembark but wary of what comes next.

AFTER A RECORD 286 DAYS AT SEA, THE USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN HAS FINALLY MADE ITS FIRST FULL PORT STOP. THE FT’S A. ANANTHA LAKSHMI REPORTS FROM PATTAYA, WHERE THE SHIP’S APPROXIMATELY 5,000 SAILORS AND MARINES WILL ENJOY THEIR FIRST MOMENTS BACK ON LAND.