PM Lawrence Wong at the Official Lunch Hosted by Thai PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra (Nov 2024)

Your Excellency  
Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra  
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen

Once again, let me thank the Prime Minister for your warm hospitality extended to me and my delegation.   

Prime Minister Paetongtarn and I are new leaders of our respective countries. We spoke over the phone earlier in September, then we met for the first time at our first ASEAN Summit in Laos. And today, I am happy to make my introductory visit, and also honoured to be the first foreign leader to make an Official Visit to Thailand since the Prime Minister’s appointment.    

Singapore and Thailand are old friends. The friendship between our countries predates Singapore’s nationhood.

In 1871, His Majesty King Chulalongkorn his first overseas visit to Singapore when we were still a British colony. He gave the people of Singapore a bronze elephant statue that still stands in our Old Parliament House as testimony to the enduring friendship between our two peoples.

In 1965, Thailand was one of the first countries to recognise Singapore’s independence and we will always appreciate Thailand’s support for our sovereignty.

So, as old friends, there is a deep reservoir of trust between Thailand and Singapore.  

And earlier at the Press Conference, Prime Minister Paetongtarn and I discussed not only the existing elements of our bilateral relationship like defence, trade, and investments, but also expanding our collaboration into new areas like food security, energy security, as well as the green economy and digital connectivity. So, we look forward to expanding our collaboration and cooperation and taking our relationship to even greater heights.

Of course, the good ties between the government and between our two countries are anchored by very close people-to-people links.

Many Singaporeans enjoy coming to Thailand for their vacation, especially when there is a long weekend or public holiday. I think many Singaporeans will know where are the best food places in Bangkok, where are the best places to shop in Bangkok. And likewise, many Thais are very familiar with Singapore too.

So, we are happy to see this two-way travel between our people, we want to encourage more of that, and we also want to work together to encourage more travellers to come to our two countries.

We are glad to see these closer links form between our two peoples, as they study, live and work in our respective countries, and also learn more about one another’s culture.    

For example, we had a Thai music festival in Singapore in January this year, and we will be showcasing contemporary Thai art at our Art Museum later next month¹. Thai films are well received in Singapore – they thrive both in our cinemas and on streaming platforms.  Like the recent Thai film – which all of you know – How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies, which broke Singapore’s box office records just days after its release.

We welcome Thai students in our schools and institutions of higher learning.  Some of them find opportunities to work in Singapore, and contribute to our economy; and likewise, many Singaporean students visit Thailand on exchange programmes, and more and more are seeking opportunities in Thailand too.

So, all of these exchanges and initiatives augur well for the future of our bilateral ties.  

And next year, as the Prime Minister said, I look forward to welcoming her and Mr Pidok to Singapore for our Diamond Jubilee, and we look forward to working closely together to bring the Singapore-Thailand friendship to even greater heights.

Prime Minister Paetongtarn, Mr Pidok, Excellencies, distinguished guests, may I now invite you to join me in a toast:
To His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn the Kingdom of Thailand;
To the continued good health and success of Prime Minister Paetongtarn and Mr Pidok;
To the continued peace and prosperity of Thailand, and the enduring friendship between our two countries. Cheers.

[1] The Singapore Art Museum will host the works of Thai artist Pratchaya Phinthong later this year.