On 22 November 2018, H.E. Mr. Virasakdi Futrakul, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand, together with Her Excellency Mrs. Luz Stella Jara Portilla, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Colombia, will co-chair the 2^nd Bilateral Consultations between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Colombia.

Both sides will discuss bilateral and multilateral issues to further enhance diplomatic relations between Thailand and Colombia as well as to expand cooperation in new areas of mutual interest. The topics of discussion will include agricultural cooperation, alternative development, academic cooperation for Spanish language scholarship, and cooperation on science and technology.

This Meeting will be an opportunity for Thailand to initiate negotiations on possible new agreements and the Memorandum of Understanding with Colombia in strategic areas, strengthening relations between Thailand and Latin American countries, and particularly in establishing cooperation between diplomatic institutes of the two countries, expanding business opportunities for SMEs through bridging Startups networks and proposing framework of technical cooperation programme between Thailand and Colombia during 2019 – 2023.

The visit of the Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Colombia to Thailand is part of Colombia’s foreign policy to strengthen bilateral relations with countries in Asia, focusing on “Orange Economy”, Colombia’s policy to enhance the growth of cultural industry and creative economy. Most importantly, this visit will start the celebration of the 40^th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Thailand and Colombia in 2019.