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Economic ties with Thailand expand

By Li Xiaokun (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-06-25 07:59

Premier Wen Jiabao (L) and Thailand's Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva walk past the honour guard during an official welcoming ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing June 24, 2009. [Agencies]

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Protesters seeking the resignation of Abhisit forced the cancellation of a summit of East Asian countries on April 11 after storming the Pattaya Hotel, where meetings were being held. The Chinese government has advised citizens against visiting Thailand since the incident and 35 per cent fewer Chinese nationals headed for the country in the following two months.

Abhisit will meet National Tourism Administration Director Shao Qiwei this morning. Thai media said he might ask the Chinese side to lift the tourism warning.

About 700,000 Chinese tourists visited Thailand in 2008, accounting for 8 percent of all foreign visitors.

Wang Yuzhu, an expert with the Chinese Association of Asia-Pacific Studies, told China Business News that the Thai prime minister was looking to mend his country's image.

"This trip should help erase the earlier bad image about political instability, which weighed down our trade," Dusit Nontanakorn, chairman of Thailand's Chamber of Commerce, was quoted by Bloomberg as saying.

Abhisit will meet President Hu Jintao tomorrow.

Premier Wen Jiabao (R) and Thailand's Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva listen to national anthems during an official welcoming ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing June 24, 2009. [Agencies]

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