Statement
by
H.E. General Tanasak Patimapragorn
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs
of the Kingdom of Thailand
at the 26th APEC Ministerial Meeting
Beijing, China
Session 1
7 November 2014, 15.00-17.30 hours Mr. Chairman,
I am honoured to be here at this APEC meeting. And I thank our gracious host for the warm welcome and hospitality.
Our meeting is a very important one because we are marking APEC’s twenty-fifth anniversary.
So we can review APEC’s successes and discuss how to take our Asia-Pacific partnership into the future.
Over the last 25 years, APEC has built a name for itself.
APEC stands for free and open trade and investment.
APEC has done much to promote a rules-based multilateral trading system. And APEC has helped to advance regional economic cooperation and integration.
But the world has changed a lot since APEC began.
More trade and integration have benefited our economies and peoples.
And increased connectivity as well as recent regional free trade initiatives will bring more opportunities.
But we also face new challenges, such as transnational crime; infectious disease; climate change and natural disasters; food and energy security.
At the same time, challenges to development remain – for example, development gaps and inequality.
Therefore, I propose that our Asia-Pacific Partnership focus more on the development dimension.
Our peoples should have equal access to the opportunities as well as be able to share in the development gains that come with more trade.
If we can do this for our peoples, then APEC will also be known for its contributions to global development – and not just to global growth.
Mr. Chairman,
APEC must intensify its efforts to address the development gap and inequalities within economies and the Asia-Pacific region as a whole.
Indeed, this will help us to advance free and open trade and achieve real sustainable development.
In this connection, I would like to propose two areas of cooperation.
First is agriculture. A number of APEC economies – including Thailand – are major agricultural producers and, therefore, depend very much on this sector.
And in many economies, our farmers are often a large part of the population and among the poorest in society.
We should, therefore, discuss how APEC can help to promote more stability and fairness in the pricing of agricultural goods and market access.
This would help to improve farmers’ livelihoods and provide incentives for productivity – thereby ensuring food security for all.
The second area of cooperation I wish to highlight is connectivity.
For Thailand, this is a development issue.
That is why we have a comprehensive plan to overhaul our own infrastructure; and are enhancing connectivity with our neighbours in Southeast Asia and beyond to China and India.
At the same time, we are working with our neighbours to develop the area along our common borders, such as through the establishment of special economic zones.
Thailand believes that creating growth centres at the sub-regional level will help to stimulate growth and development at the regional level.
However, mobilizing the necessary resources is always a challenge.
This is perhaps where APEC can help – to explore creative ways of financing connectivity, such as through public-private partnerships.
And I believe that the APEC Connectivity Blueprint is a good start. I also commend the efforts of our Finance Ministers in this regard.
Of course, increased connectivity also has a dark side – such as infectious disease.
Thailand learned from our experience with SARS and the Bird Flu that sometimes the fear generated is more harmful than the disease itself.
Fear can bring economies to a halt.
We also learned the importance of transparent and timely information-sharing as well as the need to show political will and take collective action.
We must keep these lessons in mind as we seek to deal with the current Ebola crisis.
Thailand recognizes the role APEC played in helping to manage the SARS crisis and return normalcy to trade and investment in the region.
We, therefore, hope that APEC can play a role once again with the Ebola crisis by exploring the development of a comprehensive surveillance, early-warning and information-sharing system.
In this regard, Thailand believes that a regional meeting of Health Ministers on the Ebola crisis should be convened to show the political will and strengthen coordination.
Mr. Chairman,
Thailand is ready to give all APEC colleagues our full support and cooperation to take forward these proposals on how to strengthen the Asia-Pacific partnership.
Thank you.
--กองการสื่อมวลชน กรมสารนิเทศ กระทรวงการต่างประเทศ--