(VOVworld) -  The US said Tuesday it will continue to suspend assistance to Thailand in response to a military coup and is considering moving a major joint drill out of the kingdom. 

The US is considering changing the location of the Cobra Gold exercise scheduled for next year

State Department official Scot Marciel said in testimony to the Asia-Pacific subcommittee of the House Foreign Relations Committee that Washington has blocked half of its 10.5 million USD annual aid to Bangkok.The suspended assistance was to include a US-sponsored firearms training program for the Thai police and a study trip to the US for senior Thai police officers.The US froze 3.5 million USD in aid right after the May 22 coup and is considering changing the location of the Cobra Gold exercise scheduled for next year. Cobra Gold is designed to include some 13,000 soldiers from Asia-Pacific.