Prime Ministers of Thailand and Japan Sign Deal to Further Boost Cooperation

Thailand’s Prime Minister and Defense Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha and Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida agreed on Monday, May 2, to further boost their cooperation, particularly in defense hardware and technology, financial aid, and post-COVID health care.

Both Thai and Japanese PMs attended constituency meetings at the Government House’s Inner Ivory Room, followed by a plenary meeting at Bhakdi Bodin Building. They discussed issues of mutual concern, including expediting the draft of the 5-Year Joint Strategic Plan on Thailand-Japan Strategic Economic Partnership, Japan’s Asia-Japan Investing for the Future (AJIF) initiative, establishing more KOSEN Institutes to promote human resource development in Thailand, and achieving the target of Carbon Neutrality.

Prime Minister Chan-o-cha also thanked the Japanese government for providing COVID-19 relief support and extended his invitation to the Japanese people to resume traveling to Thailand.

Prime Minister Kishida’s two-day visit to the country coincides with the 135th anniversary of Thailand and Japan’s bilateral diplomatic relations.

“The Prime Minister of Japan thanked the Thai Government and people for the warm welcome, and expressed pleasure to meet the Thai Prime Minister once again after their last meeting in 2016. On occasion of the 135th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, the Japanese Prime Minister affirmed Japan’s commitment to continue to forge close and cordial relations with Thailand at all levels, from the royal family to people-to-people levels,” Government Spokesperson Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said in an official media release.