Australia postpones Thai defence programs

Australia is postponing some defence co-operation activities with Thailand following the military coup.

This includes two activities scheduled for this week - training the Thai military to counter improvised explosive devices and training in command and staff operations.

A spokesman for Defence Minister David Johnston said the government was extremely concerned at the implications of last week's coup.

"We are reviewing the implications for government to government relations and military to military cooperation," he said.

Following months of tensions between Thailand's government and its political opponents, the military staged a coup and warned that further unrest won't be tolerated.

The US has already suspended all military cooperation with Thailand.

Australia has maintained a long-running defence relationship with Thailand and in 2013-14 planned to spend $2.7 million on cooperative defence activities.

That had been mostly unaffected by the recent political impasse in Thailand.