Anutin refutes comments on soft power sharing with Cambodia
Interior minister denies proposing sharing cultures with Cambodia for soft power promotion during his recent trip to the country
Deputy PM and Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, who leads the Bhumjaithai Party, has denied reports that he has proposed Thailand join with Cambodia to promote their similar cultures as a soft power to drive the economy of both countries.
The report, which appeared in several Thai media outlets, has sparked heated debates among netizens on the Party’s social media sites.
“Netizens are imagining things. I never talked about this culture-sharing topic, or even the overlapping claimed areas,” Anutin said on Tuesday. “I only discussed matters under the Interior Ministry.”
He explained that topics he discussed with Cambodian authorities during his visit there last week included tackling scamming and drug crimes and cross-border trading in seven provinces that share borders.
On October 23, Anutin and his delegation met Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, one day ahead of the 8th Thai-Cambodian Border Provincial Governors’ Meeting.
During the meeting, Anutin reiterated Thailand’s ongoing commitment to strengthening cooperation in various areas, particularly in diplomatic, military and border economic relations, according to social media posts by the ministry.
Several Thai media said Anutin noted that the cultural similarities between Thailand and Cambodia could be leveraged as soft power to benefit both economies, boost tourism and create jobs for their citizens.
Manet called for the opening of more border checkpoints to promote trade, tourism and people-to-people exchange and highlighted the Stung Bot-Ban Nong Ian checkpoint as a priority for early opening, according to his social media post.
