On 11 May 2011, Mr. Kasit Piromya, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Mr. Ngo Duc Thang, Ambassador of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to Thailand, met for a bilateral discussion on the occasion of the latter’s courtesy call upon assumption of duty in Thailand. Both sides agreed to push further cooperation in the fields of infrastructure development and immigration procedure to support ASEAN connectivity as well as to enhance development cooperation in various fields, such as in SME businesses and in agriculture.
Ambassador Ngo thanked Foreign Minister Kasit for the warm welcome extended to him and reiterated that cooperation between Thailand and Vietnam should be further enhanced in a concrete manner. The Ambassador mentioned that the progress in the construction of the third Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge, which also facilitated tourists entering Vietnam, enhanced connectivity between Thailand and Vietnam as well. He then asked Thailand to resume flights between Thailand and central Vietnam and raised the possibility of promoting labor cooperation in view of the growing number of Vietnamese migrant workers in Thailand.
Foreign Minister Kasit responded positively to the Ambassador’s suggestion and further emphasized the importance of connectivity. He said that some routes from Thailand to Vietnam should be improved to encourage faster transportation between the two countries. A trilateral agreement between Thailand, Vietnam and Laos on immigration and custom procedure should be initiated to facilitate cross-border movement.
In the area of development cooperation, Foreign Minister Kasit discussed the possibility of increasing Thai joint ventures in agriculture and fisheries in Vietnam. He also said that the seminar should be held every three months in order to encourage networking between Thai and Vietnamese entrepreneurs.
In agriculture, the Ambassador recounted a meeting with the Speaker of the House of Representatives, whereby it was agreed that cooperation in rice and rubber should be enhanced. Foreign Minister Kasit agreed and then added there should be cooperation to coordinate on agricultural production in the region.
The two sides also reiterated that 2011 is the 25th Anniversary of Diplomatic Relations between Thailand and Vietnam and expressed hope that there would be exchanges of visit between high level officers between Thailand and Vietnam at the earliest opportunity.
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