21 October 2002 00:00
RUSSIAN-THAI COMMUNIQUE
Taksin Chinawat, the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand, stayed on an official visit to the Russian Federation from October 16-18, 2002 at the invitation of the Government of the Russian Federation.
Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand Taksin Chinawat was received by the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, and held talks with the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation, Mikhail Kasyanov.
A meaningful exchange of views on bilateral relations and the situation in the region took place between the sides. Thailand and Russia attach great importance to the conduct of dialogue on political issues of mutual concern and the problems of ensuring international security. It was affirmed that they will continue that dialogue at appropriate levels and on a regular basis.
Both sides affirmed that ensuring a lasting peace and international stability is a common responsibility and an urgent task of all humanity. They will make joint efforts in the interest of forming an equitable and democratic world order on the solid foundation of the Charter of the United Nations and the generally recognized principles and rules of international law, and on mutual respect and broad cooperation in the interest of ensuring global stability and security for all members of the world community in the political, economic, humanitarian and other fields.
The Russian Federation and the Kingdom of Thailand unanimously spoke for the resolution of issues by peaceful, political means, on the basis of a firm commitment to the Charter of the United Nations.
The sides will strive to further expand their cooperation within the United Nations to enhance the role and efficiency of this organization and its mechanisms and they stand for the implementation of UN resolutions in solving global and regional problems and declare the inadmissibility of any actions contrary to the UN Charter.
The sides intend to use existing possibilities for the coordination of efforts to resist the negative aspects of globalization and to look jointly for adequate responses to the new challenges and threats of our time, such as international terrorism, separatism and extremism.
Taking into account the fact that political and economic successes in both countries have opened up broad prospects for bilateral collaboration in all areas, the Thai and Russian sides affirmed their striving for the development of the relations of strategic partnership on a wide range of issues. In this connection agreement was reached to continue the practice of visit exchanges at the highest and high levels and to promote contacts between various organizations and institutions, including cooperation in the cultural field in order to bolster mutual understanding between the two countries.
Underscoring the landmark character of this visit, the Government of Thailand announced its intention to participate in the celebrations on the occasion of the 300th anniversary of St. Petersburg.
The sides affirmed the identity of their views and a mutual commitment to securing peace and progress throughout the world. The Thai side noted the important role which Russia plays in Europe and the AP region.
The sides expressed readiness for joint actions in the struggle against international terrorism, drug trafficking and other forms of transboundary crime. In this connection the sides declared the need to step up bilateral cooperation, including the exchange of intelligence information and coordination between law enforcement agencies.
The Russian Federation and the Republic of Thailand believe that a central coordinating role in the struggle against international terrorism must belong to the UN and its Security Council, which bears the main responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security.
The sides agreed with the need to soon complete work on an Extradition Treaty and a Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters.
The sides discussed ways for developing cooperation in the military and military technological fields.
There was received with satisfaction the plan to settle the debt of the former USSR to Thailand on rice credits as a program opening up possibilities for further cooperation in the area of science and technology.
The sides discussed a range of measures to invigorate trade relations, including, among other things, the Thai proposal to explore the possibility of using the mechanism of mutual offsets.
Thailand and Russia noted the Governments' important role in providing the forms and methods for an expanding economic cooperation. In this context it was stressed that the Agreement on the Protection and Encouragement of Investment, signed during the visit, will serve to invigorate business ties.
The sides agreed to facilitate close cooperation and coordination between the private sectors, chambers of commerce and other business associations.
The sides agreed to explore the possibilities of and assist the vigorous development of cooperation between regions of Thailand and Russia, in particular Siberia and its Far East, in the areas of oil and gas production, forestry and the food industry.
The sides welcomed the growth of tourist exchanges between the two countries and noted the priority importance of developing this field of cooperation, including an increase of the number of air flights in the long term.
Mindful of the Russian side's concern over a possible cancellation of the simplified procedure for obtaining visas by Russian citizens on arrival in Thailand, the Prime Minister of Thailand announced his decision to take the necessary measures for preserving the previous practice.
Prospects were also discussed for cooperation in the fields of science and technology in which Russia has a rich experience, in particular solar energy use, waste disposal, space technologies, nanotechnologies, computer technologies, and genetics.
For acquaintance with the achievements of Russia in the field of science and technology there was among the members of the Prime Minister's delegation a group of gifted students who are being trained under the specialized Young Scholars program of the Thai government.
The Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation expressed regret that only a limited number of Thai students are studying in Russia. The Prime Minister of Thailand received with appreciation the Russian side's readiness to widen the admission of Thai students to the educational institutions of Russia.
The sides noted the possibility of using their strategic position for the fostering of joint partner work both in Europe and in Southeast Asia.
Thailand noted the role of Russia in ensuring political and economic progress in the Eurasian region, in particular within the CIS. Russia noted with satisfaction the progress of economic integration in ASEAN, in particular the opportunities the Free Trade Area (AFTA) provides.
The sides affirmed their mutual desire to promote the further development of regional cooperation, including APEC. In the context of the Russia-ASEAN dialogue the importance of the Russia-ASEAN Brunei postministerial meeting, co-chaired by the Foreign Ministers of Russia and Thailand, was noted.
The sides agreed that the above fora help the invigoration of dialogue between member countries and thus contribute to mutual understanding and mutually beneficial cooperation in the AP region. The Prime Minister of Thailand highly evaluated the striving of Russia to join in the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) mechanism, which, unquestionably, is positive for Europe and Asia, and also regarded favorably the communication on Russia's advance towards membership in the WTO.
The Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation assessed positively the initiative of Thailand for launching the Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) and noted its importance as a mechanism for Asian cooperation. The Prime Minister of Thailand reported that ACD as an informal flexible and open structure aims at acting as a connecting link between various regions of Asia.
Thailand assessed positively the role of Russia in the ARF and its importance as a major connecting link between this forum and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), as well as the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA).
Russia also noted the role of Thailand as an ASEAN member which is a partner of the OSCE and provides liaison between ASEAN and OSCE on security issues.
The Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation and the Prime Minister of Thailand were present at the signing of the following agreements:
- an Agreement Between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of Thailand on the Encouragement and Mutual Protection of Capital Investment;
- a Tourism Cooperation Agreement Between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of Thailand;
- an Agreement Between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of Thailand on the Mutual Waiving of Visa Formalities for Holders of Diplomatic and Service Passports;
- a Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in Space Technologies and Their Application Between the Russian Aerospace Agency and the Ministry of Science and Technology of the Kingdom of Thailand.
The Heads of Government of the two states welcomed these Agreements as concrete steps in the development of bilateral cooperation.
The meetings and talks in Moscow marked an important event in Russian-Thai relations, gave an impetus to the further strengthening of the traditionally friendly ties and many-sided cooperation of the two countries and constituted a serious contribution to the maintenance of peace and security in the Asia-Pacific region and throughout the world.
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