On 8 July 2009, Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya, during an official trip to New Zealand to take part in the 1st Thailand-New Zealand Joint Commission meeting in Auckland, visited Sydney, Australia. There, he participated in an interfaith project, met with Australian businessmen and gave a speech on the current political and economic situation in Thailand. He also had an opportunity to visit the newborn baby elephant at Taronga Zoo.
In the morning, Foreign Minister Kasit took part in a seminar held by the Community Relations Commission for a Multicultural New South Wales (CRC) and the Australian National Dialogue of Christians, Muslims and Jews. The event, part of Thailand’s interfaith project to enhance the potential and role of leaders in the southern border provinces of Thailand, was attended by community and religious leaders as well as government and local officers from Thailand’s Southern Border Provinces. The Foreign Minister voiced his support for a political rather than military solution for Thailand’s southern unrest. He also supported full decentralization and closer coordination between the central and local government, as well as the participation of local people in expressing their opinions.
Later, Foreign Minister Kasit had a meeting with a group of Australian businessmen at the Four Seasons Hotel and gave a luncheon talk on “The Road Forward: Thailand’s Political and Economic Direction”. He explained the development of Thai politics in the last 15 years, noting that it has become more open to popular participation, which reflects genuine democracy. He stressed that the current government is determined to run the country with transparency, accountability and openness to freedom of expression. On the economy, he explained the government’s Stimulus Package II, which focuses on medium- and long-term investment projects in infrastructure, a sector that is open to foreign investment. He also invited the Australian businessmen to invest more in Thailand.
In the afternoon, the Foreign Minister visited Taronga Zoo to see a 1-week-old male baby elephant born of Thai elephants given to the Australian government under an exchange programme between the two countries’ zoological park organizations. The animal is the first Asian elephant born in Australia. Taronga Zoo is now accepting postcards from the public to suggest a Thai name for the baby elephant.
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