During July 16-20, Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul made his first official visit as the PM to China at Premier Li Qiang’s invitation. The productive, four-day trip was marked by an official meeting with Xi Jinping, bilateral talks with Li Qiang in Beijing, and a meeting with Zhao Leji (NPC Standing Committee chair). 

The result was 15 signed cooperation agreements covering science, aerospace, education, AI, commerce, intellectual property, and water management, and a promise to expand investments in Thailand to 70 billion baht. 

The purpose of the diplomatic visit was to strengthen Thailand-China cooperation across key areas. Sectors such as AI, science, and education are emerging as non-negotiables in today’s competitive landscape, and Thailand will need to quickly strengthen its roots in these key areas to meet the world’s increasing demands.

The visit concluded with four key areas: government-central level, Thai government-provincial government level, Thai-Chinese private sector level, and people-to-people level.

AI At The Center

Thailand aims to transition from being a ‘production base’ to an engaged ‘partner’ in the supply chain. During the visit, Thailand discussed achieving this through technology transfer, establishing R&D centers, upskilling the workforce, and increased usage of local components. 

Private Sector Collaboration

The trip also saw multiple visits to private sector HQs, from Huawei to Alibaba and CP. The private sector responded by expressing intent to expand its investment in Thailand by over 70 billion baht and create over ten thousand jobs nationwide.

There will be a focus on collaborating across the digital economy and future-forward industries, such as electric vehicles (EV). 

Separately, the Board of Investment (BOI) also organized a business matching session to bring together Thai and Chinese entrepreneurs to explore potential collaborations, opening up new avenues for dialogue and potential partnerships. 

The diplomatic visit was a political success, with footage of Prime Minister Anutin singing the classic Tian Mi Mi ballad during a luncheon with Chinese Premier Li Qiang shared broadly online.

The Key Takeaway

Behind the diplomatic rhetoric are several key points worth watching. 

This official visit follows a prolonged period of tension over cross-border online gambling and phone fraud linked to security concerns. Thailand still needs to show it’s serious about tackling this, even as it moves to capture the upside of Chinese investment and private-sector cooperation.

As AI dominates the conversation, being touted as the next big growth driver for Thailand’s economy, it is important that we shift into being a fully fledged ‘partner’ in the global supply chain. As Thailand secures more commitment in terms of investment dollars and knowledge transfer, the government must focus on large-scale implementation that can generate tangible results for the economy.

Thailand is tasked with navigating its relationship with China in a new global order, and as the country leans towards China for technological collaboration across EV, semiconductor and other future-forward sectors, Thailand will continue its balancing act with the world’s superpowers. 

THE STANDARD Global Edition is produced in collaboration with Bitesize Bangkok