Speech by Minister George Yeo at the 8th Coordinating Meeting Of The Thailand-Singapore Civil Service Exchange Programme (Csep), Bangkok, Thailand, 29 - 30 June 2008

Minister for Foreign Affairs George Yeo had a friendly and fruitful meeting with Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand Noppadon Pattama in Bangkok, Thailand today. Minister Yeo is in Bangkok at the invitation of Minister Noppadon to jointly open the 8th Thailand-Singapore Civil Service Exchange Programme (CSEP). During the meeting, the two Ministers discussed bilateral relations in general and cooperation under CSEP. They also agreed that the next Singapore-Thailand Enhanced Economic Relationship (STEER) meeting should take place in Singapore at a mutually convenient time before the end of the year. Minister Noppadon also thanked Singapore for its assistance on the repair of Bell helicopters belonging to the Royal Thai Air Force.

During their respective opening remarks at the opening of CSEP, both Ministers reaffirmed the close friendship and relations between both countries at all levels. The Ministers were also encouraged by the new format of the CSEP meeting, which aims to foster closer cooperation between the civil service of both sides by giving the CSEP cooperation clusters greater ownership and autonomy in their initiatives.

Subsequently, Minister Noppadon hosted Minister Yeo and the Singapore delegation to a cruise dinner along Chao Phya River.

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MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
SINGAPORE
29 JUNE 2008

ANNEX A

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

OPENING ADDRESS BY MR GEORGE YEO
MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS
REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE

Your Excellency Minister Noppadon Pattama
Dear Friends from Thailand
Ladies and Gentlemen

1. I would like to thank Minister Noppadon for hosting the 8th Coordinating Meeting of the Thailand-Singapore Civil Service Exchange Programme, or CSEP-8. We were just together last month at the Pledging Conference in Yangon. I am delighted to be back here in Bangkok. The resumption of CSEP after slightly more than a year of interruption attests to the resilience of Thai-Singapore relations.

2. Close relations between Thailand and Singapore go back a long time. In 1871, King Chulalongkorn made his first overseas visit as King to Singapore. When Minister Noppadon was in Singapore for a bilateral visit in February, I had the opportunity to show him the elephant statue outside the Old Parliament Building presented by the King. Last year, we were honoured to host Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn's visit. She charmed everyone with her warm and caring personality. Her musical performance at the National University of Singapore received rapturous applause. Her Royal Highness Princess Ubolrat Ratchakanya will be in Singapore tomorrow to launch her new film, "Where the Miracle Happens". I was told that she will also be filming at various locations on the island for her travel programme, "The Princess Diaries".

3. Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej made his Introductory Visit to Singapore in March this year. He and PM Lee Hsien Loong had a good discussion reviewing the state of our bilateral relations which are excellent and on the upswing. Early this month, I was invited to open the Annual Thai Festival in Singapore which is always well attended, celebrating the warm friendship between our peoples. Thai culture and cuisine have become a part of Singapore culture and cuisine. Thailand has traditionally been a favourite destination for Singaporean tourists who return frequently to the "land of smiles". A growing number of Singaporeans have made Thailand their second home. Tomorrow, I will meet with members of the Singapore-Thai Chamber of Commerce and the Singapore Club of Thailand, many of whom have lived here a long time.

4. Our economic relationship is deep and broad-based. In 2007, Thailand was Singapore's 9th largest trading partner, with bilateral trade amounting to $31 billion Singapore dollars. Thailand is an important investment destination for Singapore companies. Last year, Singapore's total approved FDI was 34.4 billion Baht - an 84% increase from 2006 - making Singapore the third largest foreign investor in Thailand after Japan and the US.

5. Our economic, defence and foreign policy officials work closely together. To strengthen our economic partnership, we have the Singapore Thailand Enhanced Economic Relationship or STEER, which was inaugurated by the Prime Ministers of the two countries in 2002. I was then the Minister for Trade and Industry. STEER is a platform for economic agencies and the private sectors of both sides to work together realising the vision of "one economy, two countries". STEER has met twice since its inception, and I am glad that officials on both sides are making preparations for the 3rd STEER Meeting.

6. The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) and the Thai Armed Forces enjoy fraternal links which go back to the war in Indo-China. The SAF is grateful for the training facilities provided by the Thai Government. Both armed forces train together and participate in major multilateral exercises like Ex Cope Tiger and Ex Cobra Gold. In April this year, the Republic of Singapore Air Force's aerobatic team, the Black Knights, staged a public performance at Don Muang Airport to commemorate the 25th Anniversary of joint exercises between the two air forces and to express Singapore's appreciation of the support and friendship of the Thai people.

7. Our foreign policy officials have also worked well together over the years. At the regional level, Thailand and Singapore cooperate to build a stronger ASEAN community. We jointly provide technical assistance to Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar under the Singapore-Thailand Third Country Training Programme, or TCTP, which is Singapore's first formalised partnership with a fellow ASEAN country. Under this TCTP, 221 participants have been trained in the areas of healthcare, public administration, the English language and information technology. Our partnership seeks ultimately to realise the vision of an integrated ASEAN community. The signing of the ASEAN Charter last year is a big step in this direction. We look forward to the launch of the Charter during Thailand's Chairmanship once all 10 countries have ratified it. This brings us to the theme of this year's CSEP: "Thailand and Singapore: Forging a Closer Civil Service Cooperation for a Stronger ASEAN Community".

8. With the rise of China and India, we in ASEAN must work hard to achieve greater regional integration. In the face of global challenges like environmental degradation, climate change, energy and food security, we need the closest cooperation among our officials to develop good solutions for our common long-term future.

9. Since its inception in 1997, CSEP has helped to forge closer cooperation between the civil services of Thailand and Singapore. Today, CSEP will resume under the new symposium format agreed to at the 7th CSEP in Singapore. This new format decentralises the coordination of projects to agency-clusters, so that the various clusters can have greater ownership of their initiatives. CSEP-8 will break new ground in our bilateral cooperation. I wish our officials a successful and an enjoyable session.

10. Thank you.

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