On 27 January 2021, on the occasion of assuming her new position as Ambassador of the Republic of Panama to the Kingdom of Thailand, H.E. Ms. Itzel Karina Chen Chan paid a courtesy call on Mr. Witchu Vejjajiva, Director-General, Department of American and South Pacific Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand. 
 
Both sides expressed satisfaction on good relations and dynamic cooperation between the two countries, and discussed cooperation on post COVID-19 economic recovery, bilateral trade and investment, transport and logistics, with a view to enhancing common interests between Panama, Thailand and ASEAN. The two sides also agreed to exchange knowledge in areas, such as public health capacity building in which Panama commended Thailand for the success in managing COVID-19 as well as technical cooperation on increasing agricultural productivity and promoting sustainable tourism. 
 
Furthermore, the Panamanian side agreed to take part in a webinar to be hosted jointly on the Panama Canal management, which would be of use for Thailand for the development of the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC), including a development project of Gulf of Thailand - Andaman Sea Linkage. Both sides also agreed to work on cooperation activities such as online business matching to build trust and reduce risks in doing businesses for private sectors of both countries, which will also assist in economic recovery of both countries in the post COVID-19 era.