On 16 July 2023, H.E. Mr. Don Pramudwinai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand, attended the 12th Mekong - Ganga Cooperation Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (MGC FMM) in a hybrid format in Bangkok. The meeting was co-chaired by H.E. Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister of India, and H.E. Mr. Saleumxay Kommasith, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Lao PDR.

The Meeting reviewed the progress of the MGC over the past 23 years and discussed ways forward for the MGC cooperation. The Meeting agreed to expedite the construction of the India - Myanmar - Thailand Trilateral Highway to enhance  connectivity between the Mekong sub-region and the Indian sub-continent, as well as the signing of the Motor Vehicle Agreement and related documents to facilitate seamless connectivity among India, Myanmar and Thailand and its eastward extension to the Lao PDR, Cambodia and Viet Nam.  The Meeting also emphasised the significance of synergy between the MGC and other sub-regional and regional cooperation frameworks, particularly the Ayeyawady - Chao Phraya - Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (ACMECS), the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) and ASEAN.

The Meeting expressed support to the “READY” approach as proposed by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand to advance the MGC towards the future. The R stands for Resilience, E for Environmental Sustainability, A for Adaptation and D for Diversification of economies, and Y for the MGC Year of Exchange in 2025 on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the establishment of MGC. The “READY” approach aims at strengthening the MGC in the post-pandemic economic recovery, enhancing readiness for future challenges and raising awareness about the MGC among MGC countries, particularly the younger generation.

During the Meeting, the Foreign Ministers of MGC countries adopted the Joint Statement of the 12th MGC FMM with its two Annexes, which are the Concept Paper on the Revitalisation of the MGC Lead Country Mechanism in ten areas of cooperation of the MGC and the Concept Paper on the Establishment of the MGC Business Council. These two Annexes were developed based on Thailand’s proposal at the 11th MGC FMM in 2021.  Thailand is the Lead Country in Tourism and Co-lead Country with Myanmar in Public health and Traditional Medicine.

The Mekong - Ganga Cooperation (MGC) was established in 2000 to promote economic cooperation and connectivity among MGC countries, namely Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, Viet Nam and India. The MGC is the first cooperation framework between the Mekong sub-region and external partner.