Yes we can see the power feuds over Thai land, resources and cultural heritage, now and many times before. It is a same old, same old story -- the drive for evolution, survival, ...

Let us look at 'body' as a container of 'mind', together they form (certain) 'entity' with identitity, capability/skills, goals/purposes/intentions, habits/cultures/likes-dislikes, and so on.

By extension, we can look at 'land' as a container or 'environment' of society (or collection of minds) with people, resources, industries, visions, traditions/cultures/... and so on.

Why do we look after and protect our body? What if we used our body to make money more than to make happiness/health/wellness? What if we had 'no longer any' defense mechanisms to protect our body? Would we forgo our hygiene/safety/consciousness/... guards and let whatever take control of our body?

By extension, would we forgo our country -- our container and our children's container?

We have learned that feuds and wars have ruined empires (lands and 'civilizations') and people (ordinary people) killed, mamed, displaced, enslaved, ... We learned about taking lands from indigenous people. We learned about Jews' exodus. We learned about 'land title' (ownership of their ancestral land) in our neighbouring countries. ...

Have we not learned enough? 

I understand what you say.

I have learned about "territory" (or "my turf") from animals (including 'human' and myself). Kookaburras (birds), water dragons, geckos, skinks, chickens, ducks, water hens, ... around 'my home' (among the gum trees) all make and defend their territory against intruders of the same kind and of certain different kinds (wagtails will chase our other wagtails and crows). Even gum trees have their territory and drop leaves containing  eucalyptus oil that prevent germination of many other trees. Life is like that -- struggle to survive not just for itself in its own generation but for generations to come (knowingly or not). I need to defend my territory against bushfires, floods, trepassers/unwelcome hunters/species, ... Over the fence, traffic noises, petrol fumes, rubbish thrown on to roads, chemical spreys and microbes drifting in with winds,...

[OK enough PR ;-) Yes, it would be easy to let the land cover me. I have heard that in Europe, land is too scarce. Cemetery plots are charged by the number of years for family to pay for visits and care. -- we have to pay for "how long we die".]

We say, In Nature, life works in a parsimony manner (least resistance/least energy). Even when taking and protecting territory, just enough territory is secured. We can learn this and make our own territory without having to continually defend it. "We" are very likely to  defend our territory in the same way -- at least cost to us! ;-)

So when a country is no longer of any value to us...