Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc arrives in Bangkok to start a three-day official visit to Thailand (Source: VNA)Phuc is scheduled to hold talks with his Thai counterpart Prayut Chan-ocha and meet with senior officials as well as receive the Thailand-Vietnam Friendship Association’s officials and visit the Embassy of Vietnam in Thailand.
In Bangkok, the PM will address an opening ceremony of the Vietnam-Thailand business forum and attend the Vietnamese goods week at the Lad Prao trade centre. He is expected to host leaders of leading Thai businesses.
The PM is also due to visit Nakhon Phanom province in the north-eastern region of Thailand.
On the occasion, the daily Bangkok Post carried a story titled “Thailand and Vietnam: Stronger together” by journalist Kavi Chongkittavorn, saying “In ASEAN, Vietnam is Thailand’s only strategic partner.”
The journalist highlighted the historical relations between the two countries and commented the bilateral friendship has been reinforced and developed since Vietnam joined the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 1995.
The two sides have increased cooperation in all fields, the journalist said, adding that “Vietnam has taken the high road, quickly expanding the country's foreign trade relations, emerging as the region's most internationally connected, with 17 free-trade agreements. Vietnam was one of four ASEAN nations that joined the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Thailand’s record, as a free and open economy, pales in comparison.”
“Indeed, Vietnam’s attractive trade regime has propelled Thailand to forge even closer economic ties and move toward a digitised economy,” the article said.
Thailand is a leading trade partner of Vietnam and the two-way trade is expected to hit 20 billion USD by 2020, it added.
There is also a large room for the two countries to boost navigation cooperation.
“Given their long coastline, they are planning to cooperate with Cambodia in coastal shipping,” Kavi said.
“As part of the ASEAN Community and other sub-regional organisations, Thailand and Vietnam are considered a twin-turbo engine that can uplift the regional economy and create social equality and stability in the Mekong subregion,” he noted.
He concluded that the Vietnamese PM’s visit to Thailand will create an opportunity for the two countries to tighten their close relationship.-VNA
VNA
