Thailand ‘back on the radar’ as Srettha returns from Davos
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin returned to the country last Friday after attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland where he held meetings with heads of state and private sector executives to attract investors and campaign for more trade agreements with Thailand.
The PM, accompanied by Transport Minister Suriya Jungrungruangkit and Foreign Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara, pushed for the Chumpon-Ranong Landbridge and pitched Thailand’s suitability for investment to representatives from the private sector. Officials from Dubai World, already an investor in the Laem Chabang deep-sea port in Chonburi Province, expressed interest in furthering their investment.
“It’s been the government’s intention to put Thailand back on the radar,” Cherdchai Chaivaivid, director general of the Foreign Ministry’s Department of International Economic Affairs, said at a press briefing on Tuesday. “With the private sector, we had 22 meetings over a 12-hour period.”
During the forum, Srettha also met with executives from Nestle, DKSH, Bank of America and Alphabet among others, where he highlighted Thailand’s progress in developing sustainable energy sources, along with his administration’s commitment to turning Thailand into a regional hub for EV battery manufacturing.
The Prime Minister also met with Prime Minister of Belgium and President of the European Union (EU) Alexander De Croo and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, to discuss the Thai-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA), on which negotiations resumed last year. Additionally, Srettha met with Swiss President Viola Amherd to discuss the Thai-EFTA FTA that both parties expect to finalise in the “near future”.
During the forum, the Swiss delegation extended an invitation to Thailand to participate in the peace process aimed at ending the Russo-Ukrainian war, according to Cherdchai, who believes that ASEAN's experiences could be beneficial not only to Europe but to the entire world.
The director-general said that the invitation is a positive indication that Europe recognises the potential positive impact that Thailand and other countries in the region can bring to complicated and sensitive issues in Europe.
Foreign Minister Parnpree also met Mathias Cormann, Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), to discuss Thailand’s application to join the organisation, which is expected to be officially tabled this year.
As global trade and supply chains diversify, the Ministry sees membership at the OECD as increasingly beneficial. “We want to have a part in designing a new global trade system, in five or 10 years’ time, instead of just being a part of it,” Cherdchai concluded.
