About James Wise
James Wise provides assessments and presentations on trends in the political economy of Thailand. His book, Thailand: History, Politics and the Rule of Law, was published by Marshall Cavendish in April 2019. His articles have been published by Asialink, Australian Strategic Policy Institute, Nikkei Asian Review and the Bangkok Post.
James was Australia’s Ambassador to Thailand from 2010 to 2014. He also lived full-time in Thailand from 1995 to 1998, when he was Deputy Head of Mission at the Australian Embassy. He now divides his time between Thailand and Australia. After retiring from the Australian foreign service in 2014, James was an independent director of ANZ Bank (Thai) for five years (2014-19). From 2016 to 2018 he wrote regular assessments of developments in Thailand for TD International, a Washington-based consultancy firm. Since 2016 he has been a director of The Beaumont Foundation which has built a school for underprivileged children in Chaiyaphum province.
With years of experience in Thailand, he has learnt to identify what has mattered – and what hasn’t mattered – as Thailand navigated the Asian financial crisis, global financial crisis, constitutional reform, generational change, elections, coups and the Covid-19 pandemic.
His experience is not limited to Bangkok. He knows all four regions well, having visited most of Thailand’s 77 provinces, where he has met leaders and activists from a wide range of social and political groups, as well as government officials and business leaders.
James Wise was an Australian diplomat for over thirty years. In addition to two postings to Thailand, he was High Commissioner (Ambassador) to Malaysia from 2003 to 2007. He had earlier postings to the Soviet Union (1987-91) and Papua New Guinea (1983-85).
He has held several senior positions in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, including as First Assistant Secretary, Corporate Management Division (2007-10), and First Assistant Secretary, Pacific, Middle East and Africa Division (2001-03). He was also a Senior Analyst at the Office of National Assessments (1991-94).
Drawing on his experience with DFAT, he is currently researching and writing on the impact of budgetary constraints on the practice of Australian diplomacy.
James Wise holds a Bachelor of Arts degree with First Class Honours in History from the University of Tasmania.