Bangkok: The government spokesperson reiterated five key achievements of the Prime Minister's visits to Australia and New Zealand: using diplomacy to drive economic growth, opening markets, attracting investment, and creating jobs for Thais.
According to Thai News Agency, Ms. Ratchada Thanadirek, Spokesperson for the Prime Minister's Office, revealed the successful outcomes of Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Anutin Charnvirakul's official visit to Australia and New Zealand from August 17-22, 2026. She stated that the government is committed to transforming positive international relations into tangible opportunities for the Thai people.
The spokesperson for the Prime Minister's Office stated that the mission was comprehensively successful, summarizing five key dimensions that will create opportunities and benefits for Thailand in the future.
1. Opening Trade Doors and Promoting Thai Products to the Global Market: The government is moving forward with fully utilizing the Thailand-Australia Free Trade Agreement (TAFTA), while simultaneously collaborating with New Zealand to aim for a threefold increase in bilateral trade to US$7.5 billion by 2045. Importantly, the Prime Minister held direct discussions with TandG Global, New Zealand's leading fruit company, to explore opportunities to expand collaboration under the Envy brand and pave the way for bringing high-quality fruits from Thai farmers to the global market.
2. Planting the flag of Thailand as an 'investment base - production base - gateway to ASEAN': The Prime Minister used this platform to invite investors from over 50 leading Australian companies across technology, digital, agriculture, automotive, and mining sectors. He also presented the Thailand FastPass mechanism to remove obstacles and facilitate investment more quickly. From New Zealand, Skyline Enterprises is interested in expanding its tourism investment in Thailand, while TandG Global is considering using Thailand as a base to distribute its products to ASEAN and India. The Prime Minister has instructed the Board of Investment (BOI) to closely monitor these developments to accelerate the transformation of their interest into real investment and job creation in Thailand.
3. Leveraging World-Class Technology to Foster Future Industries: Thailand is moving forward with cooperation with Australia in globally trending areas such as batteries and future vehicles, clean energy, agricultural technology, cybersecurity, and AI, combining Australia's strengths in mineral resources and capital with Thailand's robust manufacturing base. A key highlight was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Top Flying and NZAero, paving the way for the exchange of aviation knowledge and the upgrading of Thai personnel to international standards. The Prime Ministers of both countries witnessed the signing.
4. Opening up new skill sets to propel Thai SMEs and creators internationally. A tangible highlight for Thais is the Prime Minister's visit to Canva's headquarters in Australia to discuss increasing the number of Thai Canva Creators and promoting the Skill Bridge project to develop a workforce aligned with the needs of future industries. Regarding New Zealand, Thailand and New Zealand have upgraded their relationship to a 'strategic partnership,' expanding cooperation in education to provide Thais with more opportunities to learn, develop skills, and generate income from the global market.
5. Strengthening cooperation between the two countries in the South to combat transnational crime: Thailand is enhancing security cooperation with both countries, particularly in preventing and suppressing transnational crime, including scammers, drug trafficking, human trafficking, and online crime, in order to protect public safety. Furthermore, cooperation in police matters with New Zealand will be expanded.
Ms. Rachada stated that this visit is a significant milestone that strengthens Thailand's network of partners in the economic, educational, technological, and security sectors. The Prime Minister instructed the BOI and related agencies to closely monitor the results, emphasizing that true success is not merely the number of signed documents, but must translate into new markets, new investments, new jobs, and tangible income for all Thais.
"Economic diplomacy means using good relations with foreign countries to create opportunities for Thai people. The government aims to attract investment, technology, knowledge, and jobs into the country, while simultaneously opening doors for Thai products, farmers, SMEs, creators, and Thai people to generate income in the global market."