On 10 September 2009, Mr. Kasit Piromya, Minister of Foreign Affairs, delivered a speech on “Thailand and ASEAN” at the Conference Hall of Ramkhamhaeng University. Gist as follows:
After the establishment of ASEAN in 1967, ASEAN has developed itself continuously and is now moving towards becoming an ASEAN Community by the year 2015, starting by having the ASEAN Charter enter into force on 15 December 2008. To achieve the goal, ASEAN has 3 important duties:
(1) Support the democratic development of each member country’s political structure to respect human rights.
(2) Promote public understanding and knowledge of ASEAN to foster among the public a sense of being owner, stakeholder, and citizen of ASEAN by supporting the role and participation of civil society.
(3) Jointly study ASEAN’s history together and produce a new textbook of ASEAN history to promote correct understanding and reduce lingering historical animosities among the peoples of the region.
Other important points are “Connectivity” through better transportation and telecommunications, and “Cooperation” on disaster management, food security, energy security, environmental conservation, peacekeeping, and international crime prevention.
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