On 11 April 2024, His Excellency Mr. Bui Thanh Son, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Viet Nam, paid an official visit to Thailand at the invitation of His Excellency Mr. Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand.

The visit is the first official visit to Thailand of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Viet Nam and a reciprocal visit to the official visit to Viet Nam of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand on 25-26 October 2023.

During the visit, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Viet Nam was granted a royal audience with Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn and paid a courtesy call on H.E. Mr. Srettha Thavisin, Prime Minister of Thailand.

The Prime Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Viet Nam discussed ways to promote 3 main areas of Thailand – Viet Nam cooperation, including trade and investment, tourism, and infrastructure. The Prime Minister also expressed his commitment to pay an official visit to Viet Nam and co-chair the 4th Joint Cabinet Retreat (JCR) in June 2024, which will be a good opportunity to announce the elevation of Thailand - Viet Nam relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Viet Nam had a bilateral meeting and co-chaired the 5^th Meeting of Thailand - Viet Nam Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC), which was attended by representatives from relevant agencies of both countries to follow up on progress and discuss future steps for Thailand - Viet Nam bilateral cooperation.

The two Ministers were pleased with the positive trajectory of the partnership between Thailand and Viet Nam in all areas of cooperation. They shared the same commitment to ensure that Thailand and Viet Nam will continue to grow and prosper together, as close neighbours and strategic partners.

Political and Security Partnership

Both sides looked forward to the official announcement of the elevation of Thailand-Viet Nam bilateral relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) during the upcoming official visit of the Prime Minister of Thailand and the 4^th Thailand-Viet Nam Joint Cabinet Retreat in Viet Nam in the near future. They were pleased that Thailand will be the first ASEAN country to establish the CSP with Viet Nam and agreed that they would work together to promote peace, stability, and prosperity of the two countries and the region.

The two Ministers were pleased with the regular engagements between the two countries’ defence and security agencies and encouraged even closer cooperation in tackling common security challenges, including transnational crimes and illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.

Economic Partnership

Thailand is currently the number one trading partner of Viet Nam while Viet Nam is the number two trading partner of Thailand in ASEAN. Both sides agreed to further facilitate and boost trade in order to achieve the bilateral trade target of 25 billion USD.

They agreed to ensure smooth flow of trade in the region through effective implementation of the ASEAN Single Window scheme and facilitation of goods in transit, especially at border checkpoints.

They discussed measures to facilitate market access for each other’s products, such as an increase in import quota of livestock and mutual recognition arrangements for local products under Thailand’s One Tambon One Product (OTOP) and Viet Nam’s One Commune, One Product (OCOP) schemes.

Both sides were pleased that Thailand is currently the 9^th largest foreign investor in Viet Nam, while Viet Nam is an emerging investor in Thailand. They agreed to increase two-way investment through regular consultations between the two countries’ agencies to promote conducive environment for investors. They also expressed support for a greater role of the Thai Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Viet Nam and Viet Nam-Thailand Chamber of Commerce.

They agreed to set up a joint working group to implement the Three Connects Strategy, which aims to connect the two countries’ supply chains, local economies and sustainable development strategies. The immediate focus will be on developing closer cooperation in clean energy to contribute to the two countries’ common goals of energy security and net-zero economy. Particular attention will also be on digital economy and start-ups, including the expansion of the scope of current cross-border QR code payment service to include business-to-business transactions and regular activities to foster networks of Thai and Vietnamese start-ups.

Development and People-to-People Partnership

Both sides were pleased with the fast-growing number of tourists between the two countries, with more than 1 million Vietnamese visited Thailand and about 500,000 Thais visited Viet Nam in 2023. They agreed to continue to work closely to increase tourism between the two countries and to attract more tourists from outside the region, particularly through the enhancement of transportation connectivity, including more flight connections, and development of international bus route and coastal sea route connecting Thailand, Viet Nam, Laos and Cambodia. Thailand and Viet Nam, along with other neighbouring countries, will also work together under the concept “Six Countries, One Destination” to attract more visitors and promote the countries in the region as a single tourist destination.  

Both sides agreed to further strengthen their cooperation at the local-to-local level, through effective partnership between the two countries’ sister cities.

Both sides will continue to work even more closely to promote cultural ties and education cooperation, especially through the promotion of Thai language teaching in Viet Nam and Vietnamese language teaching in Thailand.

The two Ministers of Foreign Affairs exchanged views and coordinated their approaches on regional and international issues, including cooperation within ASEAN and the Mekong frameworks, especially ACMECS. They expressed their support for Lao PDR as the ASEAN Chair this year.

The Vietnamese side welcomed the successful cooperation between Thailand and Myanmar on the first delivery of cross-border humanitarian assistance to the people of Myanmar on 25 March 2024 and expressed support for the initiative, seeing it as part of ASEAN’s collective efforts. They expressed concern over the deteriorating situation in Myawaddy on the Thai - Myanmar border. They urged all parties to exercise restraint and work towards cessation of violence and addressing the humanitarian needs of the people.

On the issue of South China Sea, Thailand will work with Viet Nam and all relevant parties to promote win-win cooperation in accordance with the international law and the 1982 UNCLOS.