Speech by Minister for Foreign Affairs Mr George Yeo at dinner reception with Singapore Thai Chamber Of Commerce And Singapore Club of Thailand, Monday, 30 June 2008, Shangri-la hotel, Bangkok

8th COORDINATING MEETING OF THE THAILAND-SINGAPORE CIVIL SERVICE EXCHANGE PROGRAMME (CSEP-8)
29-30 JUNE 2008

Good evening, fellow Singaporeans, members of STCC and SCOT,

1. I am very pleased to have the opportunity to meet all of you here today. It is nice to be back in the land of smiles.

2. I am here this time to attend the 8th Civil Service Exchange Programme, or CSEP for short. It is a programme to enhance cooperation between our civil service agencies in many areas. Yesterday, I had a very good meeting with the Thai Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama before we opened the CSEP meeting together. Our bilateral relations are very good and on an upswing.

3. But you may recall that, not too long ago, there were some problems in our bilateral relations. In fact, CSEP was suspended last year by the previous Thai government, which was unhappy that Dr Thaksin was hosted to a private dinner by DPM Jayakumar in Singapore. I was then dis-invited from coming.

4. Prior to that, there were anti-Singapore protests outside the Singapore Embassy following the Shin Corp deal in 2006. I understand that Singaporeans residing in Thailand at that time were put to some inconvenience.

5. It was unfortunate that Singapore got dragged into Thai domestic politics. This was not our intention. As a good neighbour, Singapore does not interfere in the domestic politics of Thailand. We know there are different players in Thai politics and we do not take sides, dealing with whomever is in government. We also remember old friendships, which was why DPM Jayakumar agreed to meet Dr Thaksin privately. We cannot pretend not to know a person when he is no longer in power. Indeed, over the years, we have developed and maintained close ties with various Thai leaders including Privy Councillors Prem Tinsulanonda and Siddhi Savetsila. Previous Prime Minister Surayud and PM Lee knew each other when they were both in the army cooperating on Cambodia.

6. It is good that both countries have put the events of 2006 and 2007 behind us. When problems arise, we manage them with our long term interests in mind. The relations between Singapore and Thailand have deep roots in our culture and history.

7. Last year, bilateral trade between both countries amounted to S$31 billion. This made Thailand Singapore's 9th largest trading partner. Indications are that bilateral trade will grow further this year. Already, trade in the first five months of 2008 has shown an increase of almost 10% year-on-year reaching S$14 billion.

8. Singapore is also one of the top investors in Thailand. According to Thailand's Board of Investment (BOI), 78 projects worth 34.4 billion baht (approximately S$1.56 billion) were approved in 2007. This made Singapore the 3rd largest foreign investor in Thailand after Japan and the US.

9. Many Singaporeans visit Thailand and Thais feel similarly at home in Singapore. Each year, over 600,000 Singaporeans travel to Thailand for holiday or for work. This means that almost one in five Singaporeans come to Thailand annually. Likewise, many Thais enjoy visiting Singapore for shopping and sight-seeing. We also have many Thai students in our schools. I remember bringing former Foreign Minister Kantathi Suphamongkhon to my constituency a few years back. Both of us were surprised to encounter Singaporeans in the coffeeshop greeting him in Thai. This bedrock of goodwill enables both sides to deal with difficulties that may emerge from time to time. Ours is an old friendship.

Fellow Singaporeans, ladies and gentlemen,

10. As Singaporeans living in Thailand, you are all ambassadors of Singapore here. I am therefore pleased to hear that the two clubs, STCC and SCOT, have been actively involved in community and charity projects in Thailand. Beyond helping our Thai friends in need, such projects will help to create strong bonds among the Singaporeans here.

11. Many Singaporeans now live and work overseas. The challenge we face is in keeping overseas Singaporeans connected to Singapore. The government has set up an Overseas Singapore portal for this purpose and I hope you will check the website regularly for updates on developments back home.

12. I thank all of you for joining me tonight, and Ambassador Chan for organising this get-together. I will be happy to take questions if you have any.

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