On 6 July 2022, H.E. Mr. Don Pramudwinai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, delivered the Opening Remarks at the Thai – Saudi Business Forum. The event, held at ICONSIAM, was organized by the Thai Chamber of Commerce in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Commerce and Siam Piwat company. Mr. Sanan Angubolkul, Chairman of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Krayem S. Alenezi, Member of the Board of Directors of the Riyadh Chamber and head of the Saudi delegation, and Mr. Abdullah Alkhorayef, Member of the Board of Directors of the Riyadh Chamber also delivered their remarks.

The Thai – Saudi Business Forum was organized to welcome the Riyadh Chamber which had led over 90 leading business people from various sectors such as industry, telecommunications, and information technology, tourism, jewelry and healthcare among others, on a visit to Thailand between 4 – 8 July 2022 to explore new markets and business partners, learn about opportunities for investment in Thailand, and create a network with Thai business people, as well as to meet with the Thai public sectors. It was the first official visit to Thailand of Saudi business delegation in 32 years, following the normalisation of bilateral relations between the two countries after the official visit to Saudi Arabia of H.E. General Prayut Chan-o-cha (Ret.), Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand, upon the invitation of His Royal Highness Prince Mohammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

On this occasion, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs hoped that the visit would allow the Saudi business delegation to witness firsthand the economic development and advancement in Thailand, and also the possibility of Thailand being Saudi Arabia’s economic partner. He also stressed the complementarities of the Saudi Vision 2030 and Thailand’s Bio-Circular-Green Economy policy, which can be synergized for the long-term mutual benefits of both countries.

The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce of Thailand, and the Head of Saudi Business delegation also witnessed the exchanges of 12 Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) including (1) an MoU between the Chamber of Commerce of Thailand and Riyadh Chamber, and (2) MoUs between Thai and Saudi companies in various sectors, such as tourism, food industry, real estates and trading among others, which will become important instruments in enhancing the cooperation between the two countries in the future.

On the same day, the Chamber of Commerce of Thailand also arranged a business matching between the Thai and Saudi private sectors, which was attended by over 300 Thai and Saudi companies.

During the visit to Thailand of the delegation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also organized field trips and study visits for the delegation through coordination and collaboration with other Thai agencies such as the Eastern Economic Corridor Office of Thailand (EEC), and the Halal Science Center of Chulalongkorn University, to host the “EEC Business Forum”, which allowed the delegation to learn about the overall policy and potential of EEC for future cooperation with Saudi Arabia in key areas such as digital technology, medical equipment, health tourism, food processing, and electrical vehicles (EV). The delegation also participated in activities including (1) visiting the Halal Sciences Center, Chulalongkorn University (2) attending a briefing on Advanced Chronic Wound Care and the use of Low-Temperature Atmospheric Pressure Plasma (LTAPP – Bioplasma Device) to treat the hard-to-heal and complicated wounds.

During the visit, a high-level delegation of the Riyadh Chamber also paid courtesy calls on the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce, Deputy Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Interior, and the Deputy Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives of Thailand, to explore ways and means to enhance cooperation between Thailand and Saudi Arabia.