SKorea, Thailand to increase bilateral trade

BANGKOK, November 10 (TNA) - South Korea and Thailand have agreed on boosting bilateral trade and raising two-way trade value, from 14 billion US dollars now to 30 billion US dollars, or by more than 11 per cent, over the next five years and on promoting Thailand to be a central business and transportation link in the region. Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra announced the agreement, with a focus on bilateral trade on rice, fruits and frozen chicken, at a press conference in Bangkok on Saturday, after holding bilateral talks with visiting South Korean President Lee Myung-bak at the Government House. Yingluck said she and the South Korean President also agreed that Seoul and Bangkok will become strategic partner and cooperate in political, economic, science and social spheres, with concerned Cabinet members of the two Asian countries to then discuss and conclude a study on the agreement within one year and to forward it to the South Korean and Thai governments for further consideration. The agreements were part of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed by Seoul and Bangkok earlier in the day and witnessed by the visiting South Korean President and the Thai Prime Minister. Under the MOU, South Korea will also offer assistance to Thailand to jointly cope with natural disasters, invest more and transfer technologies on high-speed train and support Thailand to become a central business and transportation link in the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), set to be formed by 2015. The South Korean President said that Seoul is also prepared to support Thailand to further develop national infrastructure, energy and arms production. Accompanied by his wife, Kim Yoon-ok, the South Korean President is paying a three-day official visit to Thailand, scheduled for November 9-11. The South Korea top leaders and his wife were officially welcome by the Thai prime minister, with a guard of honour, prior to their bilateral meeting.(TNA)