In the afternoon of 8 September 2012, at the sidelines of the APEC 2012 Economic Leaders' Meeting on Russky Island in Vladivostok, the Russian Federation, Mr. Surapong Tovichakchaikul, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand, had bilateral meetings with his Japanese and Chinese ministerial colleagues to discuss issues of mutual concerns and interests.

In his meeting with Mr. Koichiro Gemba, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Japan, Foreign Minister Surapong expressed his sympathy to the victims of the severe flooding in Kyushu last August.  He thanked the Japanese Government for the generous hospitalities accorded to Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra during her visit to Tokyo in March 2012 and informed the Japanese Foreign Minister that Prime Minister Yingluck had personally instructed relevant agencies to expedite cooperation with Japan in various areas which had been agreed upon during the visit, as well as reiterated the Prime Minister's invitation extended to the Japanese Prime Minister to visit Thailand. 

The Japanese Foreign Minister expressed appreciation to the Royal Thai Government for the warm hospitality extended to HRH the Crown Prince of Japan during his visit to Thailand, as well as for the financial assistance provided to those affected by the flooding in Kyushu last month.  The Japanese Foreign Minister also hoped to visit Thailand next year.

Foreign Minister Surapong recapitulated Thailand's priorities in enhancing regional connectivity, namely infrastructure development, disaster management, and Dawei.  He urged the Japanese side to discuss these priorities together in order to get a complete picture.

The Foreign Minister also stressed the need to address supply chain reliability and continuity in case of emergencies, and reiterated Thailand's readiness to cooperate with Japan to ensure the smooth operation and continuity of supply chains.  At the conclusion of the meeting, Foreign Minister Surapong mentioned Thailand's investment in a number of mega projects to make the country a hub of logistics in Southeast Asia and invited Japan to explore the potential investment opportunities.

Later, during his discussion with Mr. Yang Jiechi, Minister of Foreign Affairs of China, Foreign Minister Surapong expressed his appreciation to the Chinese Government for the warm reception given to him during his official visit to China last July.  He hoped to welcome the Chinese Foreign Minister in Thailand later this year.  The Chinese Foreign Minister informed that the Chinese Premier was planning to visit Thailand either before or after the East Asia Summit in Phnom Penh this November. 

The Foreign Minister informed his Chinese colleague of Thailand's plan to host an International Conference on Sustainable Water Resource Management among the six Mekong riparian countries in January 2013.   He also told Foreign Minister Yang about the progress made in the investigation of the Mekong incident last year, and affirmed Thailand's readiness to cooperate with China on implementing the rule of law in Mekong, with close coordination with Myanmar and Laos, so as to ensure security of water transports along the Mekong River. 

On the situation in South China Sea, Foreign Minister Surapong expressed Thailand's desire for China and ASEAN to commence consultations at the earliest opportunity,
possibly at the upcoming ASEAN-China Senior Officials' Meeting in Phnom Penh.  He stressed that, as ASEAN-China Coordinator, Thailand would like to engage China in the consultations from the very beginning.