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| Mr. Tanee Sangrat, spokesperson of the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Photo: VOV) |
So said Mr. Tanee Sangrat, spokesperson of the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ahead of the official visit to Thailand and attendance of the 29th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting (APEC) in Thailand from November 16-19.
Assessing the enhanced strategic partnership between Vietnam and Thailand as well as Vietnam's contributions in APEC 2022 and APEC Summit Week, he said that Vietnam is an economic power. In terms of economy, politics and strategy, Vietnam is not only a very important partner of Thailand, but also Southeast Asia.
In ASEAN, Thailand is Vietnam's largest economic and trade partner. Vietnam is also Thailand's largest investment destination. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 1 million Vietnamese tourists visited Thailand. Therefore, Vietnam is also a tourist destination and a major source of tourists for Thailand.
“Vietnam plays an important role, is an important member and an important economic partner in APEC,” he said. “Previously, Vietnam was also the host of APEC. Therefore, Thailand and Vietnam, as well as APEC member economies, have been working closely together to promote our economies to develop more sustainably in the future.”
In 2023, Vietnam and Thailand will celebrate the 10th anniversary of their strategic partnership. Talking about the prospects for bilateral cooperation in all fields in the coming years, he said that Vietnam and Thailand have great potential in promoting bilateral cooperation. Vietnam is an emerging and fast-growing economy with a relatively young population of nearly 100 million. It is an important market for Thailand and other countries, and also an important investment destination for Thailand.
“We look forward to building a comprehensive cooperative relationship with Vietnam. The two countries should make more efforts to strengthen and enhance the continuity and sustainability in the supply chain between the two countries to produce products in the region.”
Socially, there are very deep relations between Vietnam and Thailand. In Thailand, there is a large Vietnamese-Thai community that bridges the close relationship between Thailand, the country where they live, and Vietnam, their homeland.
And the same thing happened in Vietnam. There are many Vietnamese who have lived in Thailand, and they have good, long-term relationships with Thailand as well as their families still in Thailand. Therefore, we should do our best to cultivate the faithful friendship between the two peoples of Vietnam and Thailand./.