On 19 September 2024, the Royal Thai Embassy in London, in collaboration with the Thai-UK Business Council, hosted the seminar “Elevating the Thai-UK Economic Partnership to New Heights” to enhance the economic, trade and investment partnership between Thailand and the UK. The seminar featured 4 speakers, namely: (1) Dr. Chula Sukmanop, Secretary General, Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC), (2) Dr. Punya Chupanit, Director General, Office of Transport and Traffic Policy and Planning, Ministry of Transport, (3) Ms. Nuntanart Krisnachinda, Minister Counsellor (Investment) and Director of Thailand Board of Investment, Paris Office, and (4) Ms. Cathryn Law, Director of International Strategy and Trade Relations (ISTR). Over 90 representatives from public and private organisations and potential investors attended the event.

In his welcoming remarks, Ambassador Thani Thongphakdi congratulated the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for an Enhanced Trade Partnership (ETP) between Thailand and the UK, and reaffirmed that in a post-Brexit, post-Covid era, and given the rise of the Indo-Pacific, the UK has enormous opportunities and plenty of room to expand trade and investment within Thailand and the Asia Pacific region. By using Thailand as a hub, there are clear benefits for the UK, especially in areas such as the green economy, renewable energy, agriculture, digital, science, and innovation and technology – areas prioritized in the Thai-UK Strategic Partnership and Roadmap signed in March 2024 and the ETP signed yesterday, which will hopefully drive towards future free trade agreement negotiations. (Full speech)

On this occasion, H.E. Mr. Pichai Naripthaphan, Minister of Commerce, attended the event and delivered a keynote address highlighting the importance of the UK as a crucial trading partner for Thailand. The signing of the ETP yesterday marks an important milestone that will further unlock trade barriers through cooperation in 20 priority areas, with the workplan outlining joint activities over the next two years. The Minister of Commerce emphasised that future free trade agreement negotiations with the UK were a priority. (Full speech)

During the final session, Ambassador Thani and Director Law joined a panel discussion, moderated by Mr. Rupert Goodman, Chairman of the Thai-UK Business Council. Ambassador Thani thanked Ms. Law for being instrumental in pushing forward the ETP, which will facilitate trade and investment, and reaffirmed Thailand’s commitment to reform its hardware infrastructure, regulations, and application for OECD membership to provide a conducive environment for foreign businesses. Director Law also expressed that the ETP is the first statement of the UK’s commitment to promote trade and investment between the two sides and is also the first ETP between the new British government and Southeast Asian country to promote cooperation, especially in the areas of AI, technology, and the green economy.