'We should deepen ties with China'

THAI-SINO relations should go far beyond the so-called “special ties of brotherhood” to reach out to younger generations and take advantage of China’s new strategy to deepen ties with Asian countries, former Thai ambassador to Beijing Vibul Koosakul said yesterday.

“Young Chinese who I reached while I was in service did not care whether we have Chinese blood or who our Chinese ancestors are, but they cared if we could offer something unique or special for them,” Vibul said in a seminar at Thammasat University’s Pridi Banomyong International College.

Thailand and China established modern diplomatic relations in 1975.

“But, we have never translated such [brotherhood] discourse into real things for better relations,” Vibul said in fluent Chinese.

During his service in China between 2011-2014, Vibul said he used a lot of “soft power” – or the cultural aspect of diplomacy – to cement relations, and used social media to connect with young Chinese and promote “Thainess”.

Thainess means the Thai way of life – its culture, food, art and traditional sports, he said.

“I think it works, no matter what government Thailand has. Those who love Thai durian will love Thailand too,” he said.

Vibul said the policy to have a Thai cultural centre in China would materialise soon since China opened a similar centre in Bangkok a few years ago.

China’s strategy to deepen ties with Asian countries, initiated by the current leadership under President Xi Jinping, creates a lot of opportunities for Thailand and other countries in Asean, he said.

China has created the “One Belt, One Road” project under the strategy while Asean has launched a connectivity initiative to better link the region. The Thai private sector should look at this as window of opportunity, he said.

In the meantime, entrepreneurs from China should cooperate with their counterparts and partners on an equal basis for mutual benefit, he said. “President Xi always says our treatment of neighbours should be the same as we would want them to treat us,” he said.

Chinese professor Zhang Xizhen from Beijing University, who is teaching at the Pridi Banomyong International College at Thammasat University, said the “down south/westward” strategy initiated by the Chinese government aimed to develop infrastructure, promote connectivity and build a community with a common destiny via neighbouring countries.

The One Belt, One Road initiative aims to recreate the ancient Silk Road overland to the west and deliver a 21st century maritime Silk Road to link with Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

Beijing has established the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the Silk Road and the Maritime Silk Road funds to finance the projects, which Thailand has actively joined, Zhang said.

The new strategy comes at a time when Thailand needs cooperation to develop its infrastructure to boost the economy, he said.