Trade Negotiations Dept targeting 11 FTAs
The government is planning to boost Thailand’s international trade by signing bilateral free-trade pacts with three countries over the next two years.
Trade Negotiations Department director general Auramon Supthaweethum said the department was targeting the following free trade agreements (FTAs) as it prepared its 2022 budget.
1. The Thailand-Pakistan FTA, delayed by political developments in Pakistan after nine rounds of talks.
2. The Thailand-Turkey FTA, with the 7th round of talks due in Turkey this December.
3. The Thai-Sri Lanka FTA, delayed by elections in Sri Lanka after two rounds of talks.
Meanwhile, ongoing talks on the 15-member Regional Economic Partnership (RCEP) covering Asia-Pacific trade are set to conclude this month, with proposals put to the Cabinet in October ahead of the signing in Vietnam next year.
The Trade Negotiations Department will also prepare frameworks for talks on FTAs with the Eurasian Economic Union, the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), Bangladesh, the UK, Hong Kong, and separate Asean and Thailand pacts with the European Union. Budget will also be reserved to study whether Thailand should join the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
