H.E. General Prayut Chan-o-cha, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand, accompanied by H.E. Mr. Don Pramudwinai, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand, will lead a delegation to pay an official visit to the Federal Republic of Germany during 27 – 28 November 2018.

          The Prime Minister will hold an official consultation with H.E. Dr. Angela Merkel, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, to elevate Thai-German relations to a strategic partnership, in particular in the fields of Industries 4.0, cooperation on research and technology development and human resource development. Special attention will be given to further enhancing cooperation with Germany on technical and vocational education, as well as capacity building and skills development of Thai SMEs and start-ups that will help create jobs and promote inclusive growth that leaves no-one behind.

          The meeting between the two leaders will allow both sides to cooperate even more closely during Thailand’s ASEAN chairmanship and Germany’s non-permanent membership of the United Nations Security Council in 2019 in addressing global issues of common concern to Asia and Europe. Thailand and Germany will explore opportunities to expand development cooperation under trilateral and ASEAN frameworks, as Germany is the only country holding the status of Development Partner of ASEAN. Thailand will also invite Germany to become an ACMECS Development Partner, with a view to helping CLMV countries achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

          During the visit, the Prime Minister will attend the “Thai-German Business Forum: Asia-Europe Partnership for the Future”, together with representatives of the German public and private sectors. The Prime Minister will also meet with German CEOs from the rail and next-generation automotive industries. He will also pay a visit to Fraunhofer IPK, a German applied research institute specialised in Industries 4.0. It is hoped that close cooperation between the two countries on Industries 4.0 will pave the way for increased trade and investment between both sides as well as assistance in research and technology development that will help Thailand overcome the middle-income trap in keeping with Thailand’s National Strategy.

          The Prime Minister will have an opportunity to meet the Thai community in Germany, which is the second largest in Europe.

          Thailand and Germany have enjoyed close and friendly relations over the past 156 years. The ties between the two countries are strong, especially at the people-to-people level, and cover wide-ranging areas. The Prime Minister’s upcoming visit will open up a new chapter of friendship and fruitful collaborations with Germany and will also deepen Thailand’s relations with European countries following the Prime Minister’s visits to the United Kingdom and France in June 2018.