Why does Thailand have military conscription?

Why does Thailand have conscription in the first place? From my POV as an American, I personally don’t agree with the draft/conscription for practical and moral reasons but I understand the logic behind why countries like South Korea, Finland, and Israel would institute a nationwide conscription program. Why does Thailand need a draft though?

In terms of adversaries, I guess there’s Myanmar to the west but Myanmar has a wide array of internal problems like ethnic insurgencies fighting the Tatmadaw (I doubt they’re gonna try and burn down Ayutthaya again).

Laos I just don’t see being a threat to Thailand due to close cultural links.

That leaves Cambodia and Malaysia but I haven’t heard much actual geopolitical spats between Cambodia and Thailand in recent years aside from netizens going at each others throat about stealing cultures and traditions. I have no idea what Thai-Malaysian relations are like but I’m assuming that they’re decent, aside from the fact that Islamic insurgents operate in the deep southern provinces of Thailand like Pattani.

So what’s the reasoning? Is there a legitimate reason?

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