On 27 May 2011, Mr. Lennart Linner, Ambassador of Sweden, paid a courtesy call on Mr. Kasit Piromya, Foreign Minister of Thailand, on the occasion of the completion of his mission, whereby the Ambassador expressed his appreciation for cooperation rendered by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and noted that relations between Thailand and Sweden had blossomed during the past four years as displayed in the affinity between the respective Royal Families, tourism, as well as economic and industrial cooperation.
Relations between the Thai and Swedish Royal Families have been particularly close, with the Swedish Royal Family members having made several visits to Thailand in the past four years, the Swedish Ambassador said. He expressed certainty that this trend would continue, as the Swedish Royal Family members has praised Thailand for extending excellent treatment to Their Majesties during each visit.
On tourism, the Ambassador emphasized that he supported visa-free travel for Thais traveling to the European Union and Swedish nationals to Thailand, given that Thailand receives nearly 400,000 Swedish tourists each year, which is a very large number considering that Sweden’s population of 9 million. The number of Thais traveling to Sweden has also increased, with over about 23,000 visas issued each year. On this issue, the Foreign Minister expressed appreciation for the Ambassador’s support and reiterated that the overwhelming majority of Thai tourist is of high quality.
During the courtesy call, the two sides discussed the possibility of further cooperation in various areas, including industrial, economic, and academic cooperation. The Foreign Minister also stated that he welcomed the sharing of knowledge by Swedish institutions in Thailand, especially regarding transparency and good governance as well as political party funding.
As further testament to good relations between Thailand and Sweden, the Swedish Embassy in Bangkok is Sweden’s largest embassy in Asia, and among the largest Swedish embassies in the world. The Swedish Ambassador said that the size of the Swedish Embassy in Bangkok meant that it also served as a regional hub for Asia.
Following the discussions, a luncheon was hosted at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs by Mr. Sruangsan Chamornchan, Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs of Thailand, in honor of the Swedish Ambassador.
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