PUBLISHED : 14 Dec 2023 at 05:37
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin will attend the Asean-Japan Commemorative Summit from Thursday until next Monday in Japan where he will also promote EVs and the land bridge megaproject, said government spokesman Chai Wacharonke.
During the five-day visit, the prime minister will hold bilateral talks with his Japanese counterpart Kishida Fumio and urge Japan to take part in the economic strengthening of the region and build on efforts to reduce conflict and confrontation.
While meeting potential investors, Mr Srettha will also promote the country’s land bridge megaproject, eco-system development for the EV industry and the government’s soft power development initiative, he said.
The prime minister will highlight Thailand’s investment opportunities when meeting the Japan Business Federation, known as Keidanren, the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) and leading Japanese firms from the automobile, electronics, farm machinery and commerce sectors.
Accompanied by Foreign Affairs Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara, Mr Srettha will deliver a speech at the Thailand-Japan Investment Forum organised by the boards of investments of both nations to increase bilateral investments.
Ahead of the visit, the cabinet on Tuesday approved two drafts involving a joint vision for cooperation and an action plan to see through the joint vision for Thailand, Japan and Asean.
The draft aims at promoting a comprehensive strategic partnership covering the core areas of the economy, peace and stability and cultural exchanges.
The draft action plan provides guidelines on how to pursue comprehensive strategic partnerships in those areas and sets out guidelines to assess the progress of implementation using the existing mechanisms of the Joint Cooperation Committee and Asean-Japan Forum.
The draft documents are beneficial to strengthening cooperative ties between the countries, especially in the areas of security, education, science and technology, supply chains, trade and investment and food security, observers say.
The prime minister’s delegation includes officials from the Transport Ministry and the Thai Board of Investment (BoI). During January-September this year, foreign direct investment (FDI) was worth 398,527 million baht with projects from Japanese firms worth 43,154 million baht, after China and Singapore.