Siddhi Savetsila ( th, สิทธิ เศวตศิลา, , , 7 January 1919 – 5 December 2015) was a Thai air force officer and politician. After finishing his military career with the rank of air chief marshal, he served as the foreign minister of Thailand from 1980 to 1990. In 1991, he became a member of the Privy Council of King

Bhumibol Adulyadej Bhumibol Adulyadej ( th, ภูมิพลอดุลยเดช; ; ; (Sanskrit: ''bhūmi·bala atulya·teja'' - "might of the land, unparalleled brilliance"); 5 December 192713 October 2016), conferred with the title King Bhumibol the Great ...

. He was the

president of the united nations security council The presidency of the United Nations Security Council is responsible for leading the United Nations Security Council. It rotates among the 15 member-states of the council monthly. The head of the country's delegation is known as the President of t ...

in 1985 with

Mom Luang The precedence of Thai royalty follows a system of ranks known as ''thanandon'' ( th, ฐานันดร), which are accompanied by royal titles. The Sovereign There are two styles which can be used for a king in ordinary speech, depending on ...

Birabhongse Kasemsri.

Life and career

Siddhi Savetsila was born in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...

. He is a member of the Thai aristocracy. His father was a high-ranking official in the royal government. His paternal grandfather was Henry Alabaster who was the British consul in Siam during the reign of King

Rama IV Mongkut ( th, มงกุฏ; 18 October 18041 October 1868) was the fourth monarch of Siam (Thailand) under the House of Chakri, titled Rama IV. He ruled from 1851 to 1868. His full title in Thai was ''Phra Bat Somdet Phra Menthora Ramathibo ...

(Mongkut) and then served as an advisor to King

Rama V Chulalongkorn ( th, จุฬาลงกรณ์, 20 September 1853 – 23 October 1910) was the fifth monarch of Siam under the House of Chakri, titled Rama V. He was known to the Siamese of his time as ''Phra Phuttha Chao Luang'' (พร� ...

(Chulalongkorn). His mother was an offspring of the influential Bunnag family. He is a direct descendant of Somdet Chao Phraya Borom Maha Prayurawongse. Siddhi studied

metallurgic engineering Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the sc ...

at the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...

(MIT), graduating with an S.B. degree in 1943. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, he joined the

Free Thai Movement The Free Thai Movement ( th, เสรีไทย; ) was a Thai underground resistance movement against Imperial Japan during World War II. Seri Thai were an important source of military intelligence for the Allies in the region. Background I ...

''(Seri Thai)'' which resisted against the ''de facto'' occupation of Thailand by Japanese forces. He collected data for the US foreign-intelligence agency OSS (predecessor of the

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

) and was temporarily detained by the Japanese. Two of Siddhis sisters married US intelligence operatives, one was the wife of former OSS agent Willis Bird and one of CIA officer William Lair. After the end of the war, he returned to the MIT and received his S.M. degree in 1947. He then served in the

Royal Thai Air Force "Royal Thai Air Force March" , mascot = , anniversaries = 9 April 1937 (Royal Thai Air Force Day) , equipment = , equipment_label = , battles ...

and rose up to the rank of air chief marshal ''(phon akat ek)''. From 1975 to 1980 he served as secretary-general of the National Security Council. In this position he assisted Prime Minister

Kriangsak Chomanan Kriangsak Chamanan ( th, เกรียงศักดิ์ ชมะนันทน์, ; 17 December 191723 December 2003) served as prime minister of Thailand from 1977 to 1980. After staging a successful coup, he was asked to become Prime ...

at the time of the

Vietnamese invasion of Cambodia Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia ** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam. * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Over ...

1978/79. In 1980, Kriangsak appointed him minister of foreign affairs. He kept this position when

Prem Tinsulanonda Prem Tinsulanonda ( th, เปรม ติณสูลานนท์, , ; 26 August 1920 – 26 May 2019) was a Thai military officer, politician, and statesman who served as the Prime Minister of Thailand from 3 March 1980 to 4 August 1988, ...

took over the premiership a few months later. As Thailand' representative in the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

(UN) and

ASEAN ASEAN ( , ), officially the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, is a political and economic union of 10 member states in Southeast Asia, which promotes intergovernmental cooperation and facilitates economic, political, security, militar ...

, Siddhi advocated a tough line towards Vietnam which was occupying Cambodia after 1979. In 1983, Siddhi was elected member of parliament and in 1985 he took over the leadership of the

Social Action Party The Social Action Party ( th, พรรคกิจสังคม, ) was a political party in Thailand. History The Social Action Party was formed by the more liberal members of the Democrat Party in 1974 under the leadership of Kukrit Pram ...

(SAP) following the retirement of

Kukrit Pramoj Mom Rajawongse Kukrit Pramoj ( th, คึกฤทธิ์ ปราโมช, , ; 20 April 1911 – 9 October 1995) was a Thai politician, scholar and professor. He was Speaker of the House of Representatives of Thailand 1973–1974. He was t ...

. The party did well in the 1986 election and Siddhi additionally became deputy prime minister for a short time. In August 1990, the new Prime Minister Chatichai Choonhavan dismissed Siddhi as he sought a more pragmatic relationship with the communist-ruled countries of Southeast Asia. Siddhi's SAP was in great difficulties during the late 1980s and, in September 1990, Siddhi gave up his chairmanship. One month later, he completely retired from the parliament and the party, stating that he was tired of politics. In 1991 King Bhumibol appointed him to his privy council.
H.E. Air Chief Marshal Siddhi Savetsila, Privy Councillor.
'' Office of His Majesty's Principal Private Secretary. Siddhi holds honorary doctorate degrees from the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; fil, Pamantasan ng Pilipinas Unibersidad ng Pilipinas) is a state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by Republic Act No. 9500 (UP Charter of 20 ...

, the National University of Singapore and five universities in Thailand. He was decorated with the Order of Chula Chom Klao (first class), the

Order of the White Elephant __NOTOC__ The Most Exalted Order of the White Elephant ( th, เครื่องราชอิสริยาภรณ์อันเป็นที่เชิดชูยิ่งช้างเผือก; ) is an order of Thailand. It wa ...

(special class) and the

Order of the Crown of Thailand The Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand ( th, เครื่องราชอิสริยาภรณ์อันมีเกียรติยศยิ่งมงกุฎไทย; ) is a Thai order, established in 1869 by King Rama ...

(special class), as well as foreign decorations from 14 countries. On 8 May 2000, he was among the five Free Thai veterans who were awarded the Agency Seal Medallion by

director George Tenet. He died on 5 December 2015 at the age of 96.

Honour

Foreign honour

* : Honorary Commander of the

Order of the Defender of the Realm The Most Esteemed Order of the Defender of the Realm ( ms, Darjah Yang Mulia Pangkuan Negara) is a Malaysian federal award presented for meritorious service to the country. The Order Motto are 'Dipeliharakan Allah-Pangkuan Negara' (By the Grace ...

(P.M.N.) (1983) * : Grand Cross of the Order of Prince Henry(G.C.I.H.) * :

Medal of Freedom The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian award of the United States, along with the Congressional Gold Medal. It is an award bestowed by the president of the United States to recognize people who have made "an especially merit ...

Military rank

* Air Chief Marshalhttp://www.ratchakitcha.soc.go.th/DATA/PDF/2523/D/025/551.PDF

Volunteer Defense Corps of Thailand rank

* Volunteer Defense Corps Lieutenant Colonelhttp://www.ratchakitcha.soc.go.th/DATA/PDF/2500/D/068/1994_1.PDF

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Savetsila, Siddhi 1919 births 2015 deaths Siddhi Savetsila Siddhi Savetsila Siddhi Savetsila Siddhi Savetsila Siddhi Savetsila Siddhi Savetsila Siddhi Savetsila Siddhi Savetsila Siddhi Savetsila Siddhi Savetsila