วันอังคารที่ 23 พฤศจิกายน 2564
Intervention by His Excellency General Prayut Chan-o-cha, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand
at the ASEAN-China Special Summit to Commemorate the 30th Anniversary of ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations
Your Majesty,
Your Excellency President Xi Jinping,
Excellencies,
I am deeply honoured to join my ASEAN colleagues in welcoming His Excellency President Xi Jinping to the ASEAN-China Special Summit today.
I also wish to extend my congratulations on the 30th Anniversary of ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations. Today’s meeting is an opening of the new chapter in our history as a “Comprehensive Strategic Partnership”, which will further strengthen and deepen our relations, leading to enhancement of our cooperation in all dimensions in a concrete manner. This will lead to advancing into the new decades together in a secure, prosperous and sustainable manner.
Throughout the past three decades, ASEAN-China dialogue relations has its unique prominence and has been the main pillar of cooperation for promotion of durable peace and shared prosperity in the region. Our continued and collective achievements cover all dimensions, including the signing of the DOC in 2002, China being the first Dialogue Partner with the Strategic Partnership status in 2003, and most recently the establishment of our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership this year, as well as ASEAN and China becoming each other’s top trading partner in 2020 and jointly battling the COVID-19 pandemic and global economic downturn together. These are all significant developments towards forging even closer partnership in the future.
I wish to take this opportunity to extend my congratulations to the President and the people of China on the occasion of the Centenary of the Founding of the Communist Party. I also wish to commend the manifest achievements in numerous dimensions, both the national economic development and reform, particularly increasing productivity in tandem with targeted investment policy, towards the moderately prosperous society in a comprehensive manner and the rise to become a responsible global major power, all of which are the results of earnest determination and dedication, particularly after the reform and the Open Door Policy over the past four decades, beginning with reinventing the country through development of the economic zones in the East Coast. These are truly the inspirations for others both developed and developing countries.
President Xi’s vision, announced at the Centenary of the Founding of the Communist Party which aims to build a “human community with a shared future”, demonstrates China’s commitment to addressing the common challenges and creating the liveable world for all of us. This vision is in line with ASEAN’s vision to promote a resilient Community and win-win cooperation.
Thailand has set out our national development vision with a view to elevating people’s quality of life and improving their capacities to be ready for the 21st Century. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and other pressing challenges, we are advancing into the “Next Normal by reinventing Thailand”. Today, I would like to suggest priorities to which all of us should attach our utmost importance as follows.
First, we should focus on people-centred development that leaves no one behind and elevates our people’s quality of life for their well-being, through policies which are committed to solving socio-economic gaps, promoting sustainable growth in the basis of keeping a balance in line with the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy, which guides people to live on the basis of moderation, reasonableness and self-immunity in coping with future challenges and emergencies.
ASEAN can exchange with and learn from China’s achievements on poverty and hunger eradication, food security promotion through the “Clean Plate” Policy, rural revitalisation focusing on distribution of growth, promoting of stable income for local people, as well as sustainable agriculture in manufacturing, processing, and value-adding for agricultural products. We may also explore ways to promote joint marketing and other areas of cooperation under China’s “Global Development Initiative” proposed at the United Nations.
Furthermore, Thailand supports China’s continued and constructive role in narrowing development gaps both in ASEAN and the sub-regions, particularly the Mekong-Lancang Cooperation framework, under which Thailand will assume co-chairmanship with China in 2022, and ACMECS, of which China is one of the key Development Partners.
Second, we should focus on enhancing our socio-economic resilience from the grassroots. This includes reforming learning process and developing potentials of people across all ages by utilising science, technology and innovation in an appropriate and safe manner in order to promote leapfrog and sustainable socio-economic development. We must also improve our competitiveness both in terms of scale and speed, as well as boost potentials of the business sector, particularly MSMEs, women entrepreneurs and vulnerable groups, to prepare them for the 4IR and digital transformation.
ASEAN and China should add value to our economic partnership by promoting digital economy and e-commerce as the world is moving towards digital society for well-being in the Next Normal era. China is a leading country with advancement in artificial intelligence, big data and other innovative technologies, which are being continuously developed. Every country should be able to benefit from such expertise through cooperation which is based on shared prosperity and peace of the region and the world at large.
Third, sustainable development cannot be achieved unless it is founded upon the promotion of human security. Thailand attaches importance to development which creates balance of all things and sustainability in all dimensions, both on the demand and supply sides including food, energy, and environmental preservation, which is necessary for survival of mankind. This can be done through a balanced connection between bio, circular and green economy or BCG, which will lead to people’s living security with a better living condition without waste. In this regard, Thailand is ready to earnestly make progress in addressing climate change by every means possible with a view to reaching carbon neutrality by 2050 and net zero emission by 2065, which I had pledged at the recent COP26.
Your Majesty and Excellencies,
Maintaining regional peace and stability has been our main objective since the establishment of ASEAN. Thailand wishes to reiterate the importance of preserving strategic equilibrium in the ASEAN-centred regional architecture and promoting peaceful and stable environment in the region, particularly the major power relations. Thailand welcomes the recent dialogue between President Xi and President Biden last week. We are also pleased that both sides have joined hands in addressing climate change, which is a positive sign. We hope that such a spirit of cooperation will transcend into other areas of cooperation based on the 3M principles, namely mutual trust, mutual respect, and mutual benefit, to create an environment conducive to recovery by all countries from the trauma caused by COVID-19.
On the South China Sea, Thailand attaches importance to dialogues for peaceful resolutions. Thailand commits to continue our constructive role, particularly in promoting win-win cooperation. We support full and effective implementations of relevant ASEAN-China mechanisms, particularly the DOC of which we will celebrate the 20th anniversary in 2022. We also support negotiations towards an early conclusion of a COC that is effective, substantive and in accordance with international law.
Lastly, allow me to extend my congratulations once again for our meeting on this auspicious occasion of the 30th Anniversary of ASEAN-China dialogue relations. I wish to reaffirm Thailand’s unwavering commitment to cooperate in forging our partnership to be ever secure, prosperous and sustainable.
Thank you.
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