PM in Bangkok to attend 6th BIMSTEC summit

Kathmandu, Apr. 2: Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has embarked on a five-day official visit to Thailand. Prime Minister Oli reached Bangkok at 6:15 PM Thailand local time on Tuesday evening.

He was welcomed at the Suvarnabhumi International Airport by Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Transport, Suriya Jungrungreangkit and Minister for Culture and Sports, Sorawong Thienthong, along with their spouses, Nepal’s Ambassador to Thailand, Dhan Bahadur Wali, and Thailand’s Ambassador to Nepal, Suwapong Sirisorn.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Urban Development Prakash Man Singh and Minister for Home Affairs Ramesh Lekhak and other high officials bid farewell to PM Oli and Nepali delegation to BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) at the Tribhuvan International Airport.  

This will be the first-ever Official Visit by the Prime Minister of Nepal to Thailand. There have been no prime ministerial visit from Nepal to Thailand in the last 65 years since the two countries established diplomatic relations. 

PM Oli has reached Thailand at the invitation of the Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra. He is scheduled to hold a courtesy meeting with the King of Thailand, Vajiralongkorn. 

Likewise, PM Oli will hold official talks with his Thai counterpart, Shinawatra, and discuss various areas of bilateral relations between Nepal and Thailand, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) informed in a statement last week. The Prime Minister will also lead a Nepali delegation to and address the Sixth Summit of the BIMSTEC to be hosted by the Government of Thailand in Bangkok on April 4.

According to the MoFA, PM Oli is also scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with his counterparts from BIMSTEC member states on the margins of the summit.

PM Oli is accompanied by his spouse Radhika Shakya, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Arzu Rana Deuba, his Chief Advisor Bishnu Prasad Rimal, Economic and Development Advisor Dr. Yuba Raj Khatiwada, and high-ranking government officials, representatives of private sector and media persons.

Likewise, Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Development, Ramnath Adhikari, Agriculture Secretary Dr. Govinda Prasad Sharma and Livestock Secretary, Dr. Rajendra Prasad Mishra will participate in the agriculture minister-level and third high-officials meetings during the BIMSTEC Summit. 

Meanwhile, Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) informed that its President Kamlesh Kumar Agrawal, chairman of its Advisory Council Rajesh Kazi Shrestha, Senior Vice-President Dipak Malhotra and honourary VP Arjun Prasad Sharma also left for Thailand with PM Oli. 

They will participate in the BIMSTEC Summit and will ink understanding and agreement with trade and business bodies of Thailand on trade facilitation, and tourism and investment promotion. 

NCC has made preparations to sign an agreement with the Tourism Council of Thailand. More than 90 per cent of Thai people are Buddhists, and the country could be an important source for pilgrims and tourists to Lumbini and other touristic areas in Nepal. In 2023, more than 25,000 Thai tourists visited Nepal. 

In 2023/24, Nepal exported goods worth Rs. 947.5 million to Thailand and imported merchandise of 8.65 billion. 

According to the MoFA, the Thai government has been providing assistance to Nepal for human resource development under Thailand International Development Cooperation Agency (TICA) and master’s degree scholarships in various subjects. 

On 8 January 1999, the two countries signed an Agreement on Exemption of Visa Requirements for holders of diplomatic and official passports. They also signed Bilateral Air Services Agreement with Thailand on February 16, 2004.