On 19 April 2013, while on his mission to attend the oral hearings at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the Hague, Mr. Surapong Tovichakchaikul, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, met for the first time with Mr. Frans Timmermans, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands. This is considered the first encounter between the two foreign ministers, gist as follows:

1. DPM/FM Surapong congratulated the people of the Netherlands upon the upcoming investiture of His Majesty King Willem-Alexander. He also expressed his appreciation to the Netherlands for setting up the “Baan Hollanda Information Centre,” a project initiated by and receiving financial support from Her Majesty Queen Beatrix to honour four centuries of Thai-Dutch relations, as well as the Netherlands’ assistance on the big flood of 2011.

2. On the bilateral front, both were pleased with the four centuries of smooth and cordial relations between Thailand and the Netherlands, particularly the close ties between the two royal families. In trade, the Netherlands is one of Thailand’s top trading partners in the EU, with over 4 billion euros in trade volume, and growing. In investment, the Netherlands is the biggest EU investor in Thailand in 2012. Thailand invites more Dutch investment, particularly in the 2.2 trillion baht (approximately 50 billion euro) infrastructure project to improve Thailand’s connections with the rest of ASEAN. The Netherlands also suggested expansion   of cooperation, especially in water management, technological and agricultural development, and shipbuilding, areas in which the Dutch have great experience and expertise. In tourism, over 200,000 Dutch tourists visited Thailand last year. The Thai side gave assurances that it was putting in place measures to ensure the safety of foreign tourists.

3. Foreign Minister Timmermans praised DPM/FM Surapong for leading the team to the ICJ and for broadcasting the oral hearings live back to Thailand. Foreign Minister Timmermans also enquired about the status of Thai-Cambodian relations, to which DPM/FM Surapong explained that, regardless of the rulings of the ICJ, Thai-Cambodian relations would remain normal.                    

4. Foreign Minister Timmermans extended an invitation to the Thai Prime Minister to visit the Netherlands, while DM/FM Surapong invited the Dutch Prime Minister and his counterpart to visit Thailand.