Prime Minister of Thailand paid an official visit to Saudi Arabia and met with the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Two sides agreed to normalise the diplomatic relations, revitalise various areas of cooperation, and seek new potential areas of cooperation to help increase trade and investment opportunities for both countries.

On 25 - 26 January 2022, His Excellency General Prayut Chan-o-cha (Ret.), Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand, paid an official visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia at the invitation of His Royal Highness Prince Mohammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This historic visit was the first visit by a head of government between the two countries in more than 30 years.

The Thai Prime Minister met with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, whereby the two sides agreed to normalise the diplomatic relations between the two countries, which is a result of long-term efforts on many levels from both sides. Moreover, they discussed steps to be taken thereafter in the immediate terms, such as the appointment of ambassadors and the setting up of consultative mechanism. They also discussed the promotion of bilateral and multilateral cooperation to revitalise various areas of cooperation, such as trade and investment, food security, energy, public health, and tourism, and to seek new potential areas of cooperation, such as environment, renewable energy, and digital transformation. They further reaffirmed cooperation and support for each other in various frameworks, such as Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), ASEAN, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Thailand’s hosting of the Asia - Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in 2022, and Thailand’s support for Saudi Arabia’s hosting of World Expo 2030.

During the visit, His Excellency Mr. Don Pramudwinai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand, also met with His Highness Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia, to discuss details of the setting up of consultative mechanisms between the two countries to plan and identify strategic areas of cooperation.

Furthermore, the Deputy Prime Minister/Minister of Energy and the Minister of Labour of Thailand also met with their counterparts to promote cooperation in their respective areas, particularly the sending of Thai skilled and specialised workers to work in Saudi Arabia, and the enhancement of Thailand’s energy security.

The normalisation of diplomatic relations between Thailand and Saudi Arabia is mutually beneficial for both countries in political, security, economic, and social dimensions. Thailand and Saudi Arabia can support each other’s development goals, especially Thailand’s Bio - Circular - Green (BCG) Economy and Saudi Vision 2030. The normalisation will further facilitate travelling between their peoples, which will help increase trade and investment opportunities for Thailand and Saudi Arabia, which is the largest Arab economy. It will also help the return of Thai skilled, service, and specialised workers to Saudi Arabia and enhance Thailand’s energy security. It is expected that Saudi tourists would generate at least 5 billion Baht of income per annum for Thailand.

Before his departure, the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand had the opportunity to meet the Thai community at the Royal Thai Embassy in Riyadh to inquire about their well-being and to express to them his best wishes for the beginning of a new chapter in Thailand - Saudi Arabia relations.

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