Thailand announces plans for economic quadrangle with neighbours
Thailand announces plans for economic quadrangle with neighbours
Agence France-Presse Bangkok
Thailand's Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra announced on Wednesday plans to create an economic quadrangle involving Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar, after holding talks with his Cambodian counterpart Hun Sen.
The Thai premier said he had proposed the idea to the other countries' leaders on the sidelines of Tuesday's emergency SARS summit attended by ASEAN countries and China.
"We agreed with Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar that we would create an economic strategy together to increase income," he told reporters.
"It is a very good idea. It will not only help this region but will help narrow the gap between new and old members of ASEAN," Hun Sen said.
Thaksin said Thailand could join with the other three countries in feeding the world with its agricultural production, thereby boosting the region's economy and helping solve other problems such as illegal workers by expanding employment.
"If jobs could be generated in Cambodia, there would not be difficulties with Thailand when Cambodia laborers come here," Hun Sen said.
The four countries' foreign ministers plan to work on the idea at a meeting in the northern city of Chiang Mai in July, ahead of a leaders' meeting in Myanmar, for which no date has yet been set.
The meeting between Thaksin and Hun Sen was their first since anti-Thai riots rocked Phnom Penh in January and led to Thailand downgrading diplomatic relations with its neighbour.
Rampaging mobs looted and torched the Thai embassy, causing damage estimated at US$5.9 million, which Cambodia paid to Thailand in March.
Dozens of Thai businesses were also damaged in attacks, for which compensation negotiations are continuing. Thailand's initial damage estimate was $46.8 million.
Relations were normalised at an April 11 meeting of the countries' foreign ministers.
The two leaders vowed to strengthen their ties further.
"The incident was a nightmare, but we have learned to prevent such an incident reoccurring," Thaksin said. "Relations are back to normal and we will make them better."
Thaksin also said that a joint cabinet meeting between the two countries which was postponed in the wake of the riots would go ahead on May 31.
Cambodia will be the third country with which Thailand has held a joint cabinet meeting, following Singapore and Malaysia, in an initiative by Thaksin aimed at boosting relations with neighbors.