วันอังคารที่ 30 พฤศจิกายน 2564
PM meets with members of U.S. - ASEAN Business Council
PM meets with members of U.S. - ASEAN Business Council
November 29, 2021, at 0900hrs, at the Outer Santi Maitri Building, Government House, Prime Minister and Defense Minister Gen. Prayut Chan-o-cha attended a hybrid meeting with members of theU.S. - ASEAN Business Council(USABC). Participating in the meetingwereMr.Michael Heath,Chargé d' Affaires a.i. of the U.S. Mission in Thailand, Mr.Ted Osius, USABC president, and U.S. businessmen from 49 leading firms. Government Spokesperson Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana disclosed gist of the meeting as follows:
TheChargé d' Affaires a.i. of the U.S. Mission in Thailandstated that the meeting reflected long-standing relationsbetween the two countries,as Thailand is the oldest friend of the U.S. in Asia, and a major market in its supply chain.He also commended the Thai Government’s effective management of the COVID-19 situation, which has brought the USABC members here, andaffirmed USABC’s priority placed over Thailand in the Southeast Asian regionanditsintentfor investment expansion in the country.USABC is also pleased to support Thailand’s APEC chairmanship next year.
The Prime Minister expressed pleasureto meet with USABC members, which isthe largest groupin the history of its annual visit to the region. This would be a good opportunity toexchange views on Thailand’s economic development direction, and to furtherpromote business cooperation between Thailand and the U.S.Trade volume between the two countries during the first 7 months of this year has amounted to over US$29 billion, an increase of 6.19% yoy. Both parties also agreed that cooperation be focused onclean energy, EV technology,and promotion ofsecure, sustainable, and diversified supply chain, all of which arekey fundamentals tointernational cooperation promotion. The Thai Government stands ready towork closely with all firms, and promote U.S. private sector’s rolein a bid toenhance mutual trade and investment.
The Prime Minister proposed Thailand’s 3issues ofpriorityto drivenational economy toward theNext Normal in asecure,prosperous, andsustainablemanner:
1)Promotingbalanced and sustainable economic growth,withthe BCG economic model as a national agendato drivethe nation’seconomic developmentbyutilizing innovations and digital technology to add value to goods and serviceswhile creatingsustainability of resource basesand promoting clean energy.Thailand commits to cooperate with the U.S. private sector in the production and use of clean energy,production of biomass energy, andpromotion of EV and parts industrytopromote Thailand asworld’s EV production hub.
2) Promoting sustainable, resilient, diversified, and secure supply chainsin the region, especially in the production of high-energy density batteries for EV, and in adding value tomedical equipment and supply industryto enhance Thailand’s and the region’s public health security in the long run. This could be done through the cooperation on innovation and technology transfer to promote Thailand as COVID-19 vaccine production hub and the world’s leading destination for medical tourism.
3) Promoting digital economy to enhance capacity and potential of the Thai economy in coping with the Next Normal challenges.The goal is to promote Thailand as the region’s data and cloud center. Focus may be made on the development of platform economy, sharing economy, andcloud services, as well aspromotion and development of e-commerce, digital startups, and 15 smart cities across the country, anddigital workforce’s skill enhancement.The Prime Minister also invited the U.S. private sector to invest in theDigital Valleyand EEC’sIoT Institutein a bid to drive Digital Thailand forward.
The Prime Minister also mentioned Thailand’s hosting of APEC 2022 under the theme:“Open. Connect. Balance.”, and expressed hope that the U.S. private sector wouldendorse the issues of shared interest in order for theAPEC chairmanshipto be seamlessly handed over from Thailand to the U.S. in 2023.
TheUSABC presidentaffirmed cooperation with Thailand on export promotion and expansion, especially in the field of health and public healthcare, and commended Thailand’s commitment topromote digital economy and sustainable use of energy.He was also pleased to support Thailand’s hosting of APECin 2022, and committed towork closelyin a responsible mannerwiththe Thai government agenciesto conduct businessin the country, while fighting against the COVID-19together.
The Prime Minister thankedUSABC members for all the suggestions, and called on them to have faith in Thailand’s potential and the Thai Government’s commitment to drive economic rehabilitation for the future that is opened, connected, balanced, and sustainable.