Mohammed bin Salman visits Thailand To restore economic relations

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's visit to Bangkok this week had more than just forged a bond between the two kingdoms, it touched the feelings of Thais, and spurred hopes for a fruitful and lasting relationship.

It must be noted that the arrival of the Crown Prince to Thailand is the first visit by a member of the Saudi royal family to the country after three decades of frozen diplomatic and economic relations.

Relations between Saudi Arabia and Thailand were restored earlier this year when Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha visited Riyadh in January and the two countries agreed to work on bilateral cooperation in a "historic breakthrough".

Thailand invited the crown prince to be a special guest at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit on November 18-19, and while his meetings with the Thai leadership resulted in several memos on energy, tourism and the normalization of diplomatic relations.

“Saudi Arabia’s leader, the crown prince and prime minister, is very well respected by our people,” said Thani Sangrat, director general of information at the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs and soon to be Thailand’s ambassador to the United States.

He said the visit was "closely watched and followed by the Thai people in Thailand and around the world".

With the restoration of relations with Saudi Arabia, Thailand has found itself a new partner in dealing with volatile energy markets and the energy transition.

Business development expert Subalrak Aramkitvutha saw the crown prince's visit as a "great opportunity," saying, "We are very happy that we have this opportunity." "Business and everything can come to Thailand, or any company from Thailand can go to the Middle East."

"Now we can do a lot between Thailand and Saudi Arabia. We can work with the Saudis for the future of energy, the future of green hydrogen or future growth in other aspects such as the digital economy," Subalark Aramkitvutha added.

“Saudi Arabia and Thais actually have a lot of rich cultures, and with such rich cultures it would be good to have an exchange starting from food to nature, to fashion, to many handicrafts and everything,” said Vuralak Tullavorn.

Vuralak Tullavorn added, “In the past 30 years, we have not seen many Saudi restaurants in Bangkok. We would like to taste Saudi food.”