PM Srettha to stress infrastructure projects at ASEAN-Australia Summit

Thailand Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin is set to highlight the nation’s infrastructure advancements, particularly the Land Bridge and Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) projects, at the 2024 ASEAN-Australia Special Summit continuing until tomorrow, according to an official government representative.

Government spokesperson Chai Wacharonke announced yesterday that the Thai prime minister will also seek to strengthen collaboration in logistics, capitalisation of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), digital economy growth, visa processing improvements, and the Green Agenda, all of which align with Thailand’s interests.

PM Srettha embarked on his journey to Melbourne for the special summit yesterday, according to Chai. The summit is also a celebration of the 50th anniversary of Australia’s initiation as ASEAN’s premier dialogue partner.

Chai further stated that the 62 year old Thai PM would introduce strategies to tackle multiple regional and international issues. Thailand’s stance on the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea, humanitarian aid to Myanmar, and food and health security are among the matters that the country intends to assert.

PM Srettha’s itinerary includes bilateral dialogues with the prime ministers of Malaysia, Laos, Australia, and New Zealand, Chai stated.

The government spokesman also disclosed that the Thai premier plans to convene with executives of leading global corporations, among them Fortescue (metal mining and green energy), Linfox (transportation and logistics), Redflow (zinc-bromine flow battery for clean energy storage), ANCA (software development), NextDC (data management), and Hesta (superannuation fund).

The Bangkok-born PM’s mission in Melbourne concludes tomorrow night before he travels to Germany for the ITB (Internationale Tourismus-Börse Berlin) Berlin 2024.

On a different note, PM Srettha expressed satisfaction yesterday with the outcome of an evaluation of his administration’s initial half-year in office. Despite this, he acknowledged that there are numerous tasks that the government still needs to address, reported Bangkok Post.

The Thai PM committed to delivering a government progress update to the House six months from now, following the conclusion of his 11-day foreign trip. This commitment is in response to the opposition’s criticism regarding the absence of reports on his travels.