Thai PM to visit Bahrain April 24-26

BANGKOK, April 19 (TNA) - Thai Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-ocha is scheduled to visit Bahrain during April 24-26, aimed to strengthen relations between Bahrain and Thailand and to discuss bilateral cooperation in security and many other areas. Krerkpan Roekchamnong,Director-General of the Department of South Asian, Middle East and African Affairs, under the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told journalists on Wednesday that the prime minister's upcoming trip to Bahrain is at the invitation of his Bahraini counterpart Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa and will be his first visit to the Middle East. Accompanied by his entourage, including Foreign minister Don Pramudwinai, Commerce Minister Apiradi Tantraporn, Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister General Chatchai Sarikulya, Public Health Minister Dr. Piyasakol Sakolsatayadorn and Board of Investment of Thailand (BOI) Secretary-General Hirunya Suchinai, Krerkpan said the Thai premier will have an audience with His Majesty King Hamad Bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain during his upcoming trip. Krerkpan stated that the Thai prime minister will also have a bilateral meeting with his Bahraini counterpart, during which the two leaders will exchange views on several issues and follow up progress of investment projects, while the Bahraini side will also be briefed on Thailand's Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) Development Project, in which Bahrain is expected to be interested in being part of foreign investment inflows. Besides, bilateral cooperation in public health, security and anti-drug trafficking will be discussed. According to the senior official, the Bahraini and Thai leaders will also witness the signing of three bilateral agreements, including the Memorandum of Understanding on Agriculture Cooperation, the Protocol on Amending the Convention for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with Respect to Taxes on Income and the Memorandum of Understanding between University of Bahrain and Prince of Songkla University in the Thai South. (TNA)