On 23 January 2012, Mr. Douglas Harvey Monro Gibson, Ambassador of the Republic of South Africa to Thailand, paid a courtesy call on Foreign Minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul to bid farewell as he completes his tenure in Thailand. Foreign Minister Surapong congratulated Ambassador Gibson for helping to promote Thai-South African relations, in particular cooperation in trade, tourism and technical cooperation in which both countries have shared interests. Ambassador Gibson, in turn, thanked and praised the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as all Thais he had worked with, for their smiles and hardwork.
Ambassador Gibson said that South Africa wanted to learn from Thailand and ASEAN with regards to connectivity within the region. At the same time, Foreign Minister Surapong said that ASEAN could also learn from the European Union (EU) and the problems it faced. Foreign Minister Surapong pointed out that one of the factors promoting connectivity within ASEAN are the similarities in tradition, culture, religion, climate and abundance in natural resources the ASEAN countries shared. This in turn led to more exchanges and interaction between each other. In this regard, Thailand and ASEAN stood ready to share their experiences with South Africa, so as to promote connectivity within the African continent.
Additionally, Ambassador Gibson took the opportunity to congratulate the Thai Government under Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra for its leadership in addressing the country’s political situation and flood crisis. At the same time, the leadership of the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader Abhisit Vejjajiva during the political transition period should also be commended, as they set a good example of a country enjoying full-fledged democracy.
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