On 14 May 2011, Mr. Kasit Piromya, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand, together with Mr. Kevin Rudd, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Australia, gave a joint interview to the press on the occasion of the latter’s visit to Thailand and held bilateral talks with Foreign Minister Kasit, gist as follows:
1. At present, relations between Thailand and Australia are good and cordial, especially since 2005 with the entry into force of the Thailand-Australia Free Trade Agreement (FTA) which led to increased trade and jobs. In this regard, Australia is the 6th export market of Thailand, while Thailand is the 9th export market of Australia. Thus, both countries will closely work together to find ways to step up cooperation, especially given that Thailand and Australia will soon celebrate the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations with each other.
2. In terms of regional cooperation, both Thailand and Australia are players in many frameworks and share similar views, whether in the frameworks of UN, APEC, EAS; etc. In particular, within the EAS framework, both sides welcome the participation of the United States and Russia. Furthermore, both sides will cooperate to deal with challenges posed by the world, whether they be natural disaster or terrorism.
3. Pertaining to the question of Myanmar assuming the ASEAN Chair in 2014, both Ministers replied that it is up to the ASEAN consensus whereby ASEAN will continue to discuss the matter in detail. Anyhow, Australia welcomes the visit of the Indonesian Foreign Minister, as Chair of ASEAN, to Myanmar in this near future and the Australian Foreign Minister will also visit Myanmar at the earliest opportunity.
4. Asked about the problem of displaced persons from Myanmar along the Thai-Myanmar border, Australia welcomes Thailand’s humanitarian assistance for the displaced persons and realized that it is a burden for Thailand. In this regard, Australia has helped alleviate the problem through cooperation with Non-Government Organizations (NGOs).
For further information, please contact the Press Division, Department of Information, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tel.02-6435170, Fax.02-6435169, E-mail: div0704@mfa.go.th