China, Thailand to enrich connotation of their family-like relations

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha on Nov. 19 agreed to build a more stable, prosperous and sustainable China-Thailand community with a shared future.

Xi's visit to Thailand is his first trip to Thailand as the President of China. During his meeting with Prayut, Xi congratulated Thailand on its success in hosting the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting, stressing the thousand-year-old friendship between China and Thailand and the fraternity between the two peoples.

Thai people welcome Chinese President Xi Jinping to attend the 29th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in Thailand and visit Thailand, waving Chinese and Thai national flags, Nov. 17. (Global Times/Yang Ruoyu)

In the past 10 years since China and Thailand established a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership, traditional friendship between the two countries has continued to flourish, their comprehensive strategic cooperation has continued to deepen and bilateral relations have entered a new stage of development, Xi noted.

Standing at a new historical starting point, Xi said, China is willing to carry forward the special friendship between China and Thailand, which are "as close as one family," add new meaning to the friendship, open up a new era of bilateral ties and bring more benefits to their people.

Both sides reaffirmed commitment to further enhancing mutual trust, understanding and support on major issues of principle concerning national sovereignty, unification and territorial integrity.

They issued the Joint Statement between the People's Republic of China and the Kingdom of Thailand on Working towards a China-Thailand Community with a Shared Future for Enhanced Stability, Prosperity and Sustainability, which charted the course for the future development of their bilateral relations.

The building of a China-Thailand community with a shared future reflects the high-level development of the bilateral relations between the two countries, and will build a stronger international force for building a community with a shared future for mankind.

The family-like relations between China and Thailand lay a solid foundation for the two countries to deepen practical cooperation.

Leaders of the two countries jointly witnessed the signing of the Joint Action Plan on China-Thailand Strategic Cooperation between the Government of the People's Republic of China and the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand (2022-2026), the Cooperation Plan between the Government of the People's Republic of China and the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand on Jointly Promoting the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, and other cooperation documents in such fields as investment, e-commerce, and science and technology.

Students from the Princess Galyani Vadhana Institute of Music in Thailand learn traditional Chinese painting at the China Cultural Center in Bangkok. (People's Daily/Sun Guangyong)

These documents will help the two countries work together for more fruitful cooperation in various fields, seek greater synergy between their development strategies and jointly advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation to deliver new results.

Guided by the leaders of the two countries, China and Thailand will strengthen cooperation in traditional fields such as investment, trade, tourism, infrastructure and industrial parks, and at the same time cultivate new growth areas and drive progress in new fields of cooperation such as digital economy, new energy vehicles and technological innovation.

The two sides will speed up China-Thailand-Laos tripartite railway cooperation, advance the China-Thailand-Laos Connectivity Development Corridor Outlook, step up efforts to crack down on cross-border crimes, strengthen youth exchanges, and deepen livelihood cooperation, which will help enrich the connotation of the China-Thailand community with a shared future.

The family-like relations between China and Thailand provide important strength for the two sides to deepen coordination on international affairs.

The two sides will implement the consensus reached at the China-ASEAN Special Summit to Commemorate the 30th Anniversary of China-ASEAN Dialogue Relations, uphold regionalism and jointly maintain ASEAN centrality in the evolving regional architecture, and advance the China-ASEAN Comprehensive Strategic Partnership through the building of a peaceful, safe and secure, prosperous, beautiful, and amicable home.

Workers assemble a chassis of a new energy vehicle at a factory of the Chinese carmaker Great Wall Motor in Rayong, Thailand. (People's Daily/Zhao Yipu)

The two sides will promote mutually beneficial cooperation between the Belt and Road Initiative and the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP) and ensure quality implementation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), so as to release more dividends for regional cooperation.

They will make joint efforts to promote multilateralism and international cooperation at all levels, by strengthening coordination and cooperation at the United Nations and other multilateral frameworks.

They attach great importance to strengthening cooperation under the Global Development Initiative to accelerate the momentum towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, and will explore cooperation under the framework of the Global Security Initiative.

Together, the two sides will make new contributions to peace, security, prosperity and sustainable development for the region and even the world.

China-Thailand relations have withstood the test of time and grown even stronger in the new era. The two countries will keep carrying forward the special bond that "China and Thailand are as close as one family," jointly build a China-Thailand community with a shared future, improve the two people’s sense of fulfillment and happiness and write a new chapter in bilateral relations.