1983, Mar 30 - A Malaysian army unit attacks communist armed guerillas in the town of Grik forcing a group of guerillas to flee to Thailand.
1983, Mar 31 - Vietnamese groups begins spraying bullets into the Khmer Rouge headquarters on Thai territory, drawing Bangkok into a defensive campaign. Intense exchange of artillery and tank fire kills 30 civilians and injures some 300 persons. Approximately 22,000 Cambodian civilians flee to Thailand for refuge.
1983, Apr 18 - A national parliamentary election is held. In this election, none of the country’s 14 political parties wins a majority in the 324 seat House of Representatives. Upon invitation of the 4 largest parties in Parliament, Prem who is not himself a Member of Parliament forms a new government.
1983, Oct - Bangkok is hit by the worst floods in 40 years.
1984, Mar - A dispute between Thailand and Laos develops over three villages: Ben Mai, Bang Klang and Van Sabang.
1984, Mar 11 - Some 7,000 sticks of dynamite levels the walled compound and residence of Chinese nationalist General Li Wen Huan in Chiang Mai. The blast destroys 40 other houses. The assassination is believed to be the work of the Shan United Army of drug lord Khun Sa who is suspected to attempt to wipe out the Kuomintang remnants that have fled from the Chinese communists to Burma in 1949 and from Burma to Thai territory in 1961.
1984, May 11 - Pope John Paul II arrives in Bangkok for a two-day visit. He holds an open-air mass and visits refugee camps along the Cambodian border.
1984, Jul 20 - The military raids hide-outs of communists in Bangkok and arrests 16 communist rebel leaders, found to be in possession of 131,000 US Dollar, several cars and firearms.
1984, Sep 14 - As the Thai economy begins to dwindle Bangkok depositors and investors rush to banks and investment houses to retrieve their money. The stock market takes a nose dive.
1984, Oct 23 - The 159 member nations of the United Nations vote to install Thailand to its 15 member Security Council.
1984, Nov 6 - The Baht is devaluated by 14.8%, from around 23 to around 27 Baht for 1 US dollar. Because of this devaluation, five generals write to Prime Minister Prem demanding a reshuffle of the cabinet, expressing their belief that the prime minister could better improve the economy if some people in the cabinet vacate their seats. On the same day, Vietnamese troops attack a lightly manned Thai border Patrol Police Outpost near Surin at the Thai-Cambodian border, 420km (263mi) from Bangkok. 3 Thais die, 31 are wounded and 5 are missing.
1984, Nov 7 - In a radio broadcast, General Arthit Kamlangek, the powerful army chief and supreme commander of the kingdom’s military forces, airs harsh words on the devaluation of the Baht. Because of this, the government organizes a pro-devaluation program; 4 out of 5 generals who were signatories of the above mentioned letter to Prem reaffirm their loyalty to the prime minister.
1985, Mar 6 - The Thai military forces some 1000 Vietnamese troops to retreat from one of three hills on Thai territory which the Vietnamese had captured the preceding days. Vietnamese troops are regularly intruding into Thai territory in attempts to outflank units of the Cambodian resistance groups. As these groups receive support through Thailand and even have possible escape routes through Thai territory, their backs are kept free - as long as Vietnamese troops attacking the resistance fractions respect Thai territory. The Thai counter attack against the intruding Vietnamese troops leaves some 60 people dead.
1985, Apr 20 - At Trat, some 1,200 Vietnamese troops attack Thai positions situated 3 to 4 kilometers from the Gulf of Thailand.
1985, Sep 9 - The Young Turks fraction of the Thai military again attempts to topple the government of General Prem but fails again. Suspected masterminds of the coup attempt are cashiered Army Colonel Manoon Roopkachorn and his brother, Wing Commander Manas Roopkachorn; Manas and Manoon who had also been involved in the aborted coup attempt in April, 1981, flee the country. Among the supporters of the coup attempt were several former high ranking officials, among them former Prime Minister Kriangsak Chomanan, former Supreme Commander General Sermna Nakhon, former Army chief General Yos Thepasdin, former Air Force chief Marshall Krasae Satharat and former Air Force chief Marshall Arum Promthep. Within 10 hours, government-loyal troop led by General Chavalit Yongchaiyuth quell the rebellion. There are 5 casualties, 2 of them foreign journalists.
