One side may have overdone it. The other may have overreacted to it. But will Thursday's government-military drama over the GT200 bomb detectors lead to a break-up of the relationship that has been so crucial to maintaining a fragile semblance of political stability?
The sources ruled out deterioration of the tension, saying both sides might already be trying behind the scenes to mend fences. Some of the high-ranking government sources criticised the media for overdramatising Thursday's events.
"The media should not have fanned the tension, especially as the country is entering an extremely sensitive period politically," one source said.
It has been hard for the media to avoid such a story, though. Two days after Abhisit told a news conference that scientific testing had confirmed the ineffectiveness of the GT200, military top brass lined up on television in an eerie show of solidarity, defending the use of the equipment they claimed had saved up to 7,500 lives in the deep South. In response, Abhisit insisted the device was useless.
All eyes were on Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban yesterday, because he has served as a good go-between over the past few years, making the relationship between the ruling Democrat Party and the military "unprecedentedly good".
However, said another source, while Suthep's mediating role might be needed, Abhisit and Army chief Anupong Paochinda were known to have established direct contact, and this might come in handy in situations like this.
Observers said Abhisit might have mishandled the test results by the Science Ministry, as the Army was left out when the prime minister went public to declare the GT200 as a virtually worthless device.
There was a better way to do it without hurting the military's feelings so much, they said.
Yet the military's response was even more stunning. The television gathering seemed even more dramatic than when the top brass went on air to criticise the Somchai Wongsawat government over the bloody police crackdown on yellow-shirt protesters in October 2008.
However, none of the sources viewed it as a prelude to a breakdown in the relationship - or something worse. After all, as bitter as it is, the military can hardly accuse the government of playing back-stabbing politics, since the whole GT200 episode started in the UK, which banned export of the devices to Iraq and Afghanistan.
"I see the military's move as an overreaction, but I don't think the gathering was meant to be a serious warning or anything," one source said.
At least for now. Both Abhisit and the military need to do damage control, because their actions may affect each other's responsibility. Abhisit's declaration that the GT200 was not to be trusted could cast a shadow over cases in the deep South that involved the use of the device. The military's staunch defence of GT200, on the other hand, must have killed any chance for Thailand to get any compensation or demand money back from the manufacturer.
Such issues can always come back to haunt both parties even if the government and military may have managed to cool down tensions now. But as of today, both sides know this is a bad time to quarrel. The real test may not come until after next Friday, Judgement Day, when things will likely become more complicated for everyone.
