The Thai Deputy Prime Minister made the remarks at the meeting with President Tran Dai Quang in Hanoi on July 28, who is in Vietnam to attend the “Thai Cultural Days” programme marking the 40th anniversary of the bilateral diplomatic ties (August 6).President Tran Dai Quang has affirmed that Vietnam’s consistent policy of attaching importance to the strategic partnership with Thailand and expressed his wish for the ties to have new progresses. He used the occasion to thank Thailand for its 100,000 USD aid package to support Vietnam’s southern localities struck by drought and saltwater intrusion.
President Tran Dai Quang and Thai Deputy Prime Minister Tanasak Patimapragorn
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The leader suggested the two countries step up their bilateral cooperation as well as their collaboration with other countries and international organisations to manage and use the Mekong River ’s water resources in a sustainable and effective manner, and in accordance with international practice, thus ensuring interests of countries at the lower reach of the river.
He underscored the need for the two sides to actively implement the joint statement of the third Vietnam-Thailand Cabinet Meeting, the plan of action realising the bilateral strategic partnership for 2014-2018, and bilateral cooperative mechanisms, with attention paid to scheduling the third meeting of the Vietnam-Thailand Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation.
President Tran Dai Quang called for joint efforts to set forth specific measures to fruitfully put into place the action programme on Vietnam-Thailand trade and investment for 2015-2016, gearing towards a two-way trade value of 20 billion USD in 2020. The two countries should continue actualising their defence cooperation agreement and swiftly implement deputy ministerial-level dialogues between their defence ministries, as well as between the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security and the Thai Royal Police, he said.
The President proposed increasing the use of a hotline between the two countries’ naval forces to promptly settle maritime issues, including incidents relating to their fishermen, which, he said, should be resolved in the humanitarian spirit, the strategic partnership and the friendship between their people. The Vietnamese State will create the best possible conditions for Thai investors and businesses to operate in the country and encourage Thai investments in tourism, garment-textile, food, farm produce and chemicals, he said.
Regarding the East Sea issue, President Tran Dai Quang appreciated Thailand’s position on valuing peace, stability and sustainable development in the waters and stressing the need to fully and effectively effectuate the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea and work towards the early formation of a Code of Conduct in the East Sea. He noted his wish that Thailand, as an important ASEAN member, will enhance its coordination with Vietnam and other ASEAN member countries to maintain the bloc’s common stance on the issue in order to ensure peace, stability, and maritime security and safety in the East Sea .
For his part, Tanasak Patimapragorn affirmed that Thailand stands ready to join hands with Vietnam across fields, thus contributing to strengthening ASEAN’s intra-bloc affiliation. He described cultural, tourism and sport collaboration as a spotlight in the bilateral ties and stressed Thailand’s views to address maritime issues in the spirit of the strategic partnership and through diplomatic channels between the two countries’ competent agencies and the respective embassies.
Discussing cooperation within the Association of the Southeast Asian Nations, the Thai DPM said the ASEAN region is one of great potential and the potential would be further strengthened by its extra-regional connections, quoting estimations that by 2015, the population will reach 625 million and the GDP 2.69 trillion USD.
According to the Thai DPM, in recent years, there has been a growing interest in the discussion on regional cooperation through a new regional architecture in East Asia and Asia-Pacific. Such interest is driven by the fact that the world’s economic centre is shifting from the Atlantic to the Pacific with East Asia as a hub. Regional integration in East Asia is, therefore, in a paramount interest not only to countries in East Asia, but also to the rest of the world.
He stressed that Thailand, like other ASEAN Member States, recognises and supports the mutually reinforcing roles of the existing regional mechanisms such as ASEAN+1, ASEAN+3, East Asia Summit (EAS), ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), Trilateral Cooperation and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), which would help promote East Asian cooperation and integration.
