Toast Speech by PM Lee Hsien Loong at the Official Dinner hosted in honour of His Excellency General Prayut Chan-o-cha, PM of the Kingdom of Thailand

Your Excellency General Prayut Chan-o-cha,
Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand

Associate Professor Naraporn Chan-o-cha

Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen

It is with much pleasure that I welcome Prime Minister Prayut, Professor Naraporn and your distinguished delegation to Singapore.  We had a good meeting at the Leaders’ Retreat this afternoon, and then we witnessed the signing of a revised Avoidance of Double Taxation Agreement and three MOUs to expand cooperation in the cruise tourism industry; to develop the creative content industry; and strengthen collaboration between our respective business federations.
 
Thailand and Singapore share close historical ties.  There is a Bronze Elephant Statue at the Old Singapore Parliament House that symbolises our long-standing friendship.  It was a gift from His Majesty King Chulalongkorn to commemorate his visit to Singapore in 1871, which was also his inaugural overseas visit.  Incidentally, King Chulalongkorn stayed in this building during that visit.  The building was then known as the Government House; now we call it the Istana.  The King developed such a liking for Singapore that he bought a mansion at Orchard Road called Hurricane House, to stay in whenever he was in Singapore.  Today, the iconic Royal Thai Embassy along Orchard Road stands on the property that King Chulalongkorn bought.  That is also another enduring reminder of the historical ties and friendship between our two countries.
 
These strong ties continue to grow into the present day.  I have been honoured to host Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn on many occasions over the past few years.  Last year, we hosted her for lunch here and served her one of her favourite Singaporean dishes – Hainanese Chicken Rice!  We have also hosted Her Royal Highness Princess Bajrakitiyabha Mahidol in January last year under the Lee Kuan Yew Exchange Fellowship.
  
Prime Minister, your visit to Singapore is a very timely one, because our two countries celebrate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations this year.  The visit reminds us of the road that our two nations had travelled together.  Thailand was one of the first countries to establish diplomatic relations with Singapore in September 1965, about a month after our independence.  And this is a friendship which has held steady through many difficult times, including during the tumultuous decades of the 1970s and 1980s, during the Vietnam War, during the second Indo-Chinese War, and then as we worked together as founding members of ASEAN to promote regional peace and stability.
  
Today, we continue our close cooperation in many areas.  Our economic ties are strong.  Bilateral trade has grown steadily and now is about S$30 billion.  Singapore was Thailand’s second largest investor and the top investor from ASEAN into Thailand for the last few years.  I hope we will do more and our companies will find fresh opportunities to invest and to work with one another.
 
We also cooperate closely in defence.  Our militaries train together.  We have a well-established working relationship.  I would like to thank the Prime Minister for the generosity of our Thai host, who have hosted our troops and air force units and enabled them to train in Thailand for many years.  I remember I visited Sai Yoke Camp in Kanchanaburi in 1982 as a young officer, before it was built.  I have not been back since, but I am grateful that for the past 30 plus years, you have been excellent hosts.  I hope our soldiers have been good guests.

Our civil services also hold exchanges with each other through the Thailand-Singapore Civil Service Exchange Programme.  We also work well together in regional and international fora.
 
These good ties are not just between the two Governments, but also between our two peoples.  Many Thais visit Singapore, over half a million last year, and many Singaporeans visit Thailand, even more, 800,000 last year.  Since it is now school holidays, I think there must be thousands of families holidaying in Thailand right now!  They go to Bangkok for shopping; they go to Koh Samui and Phuket for the beautiful beaches; they go to Chiang Rai for elephant rides and jungle trekking.  It is very convenient because our two countries are highly connected.  There are lots of low-cost carriers and we have direct flights to six Thai cities.  When I have a chance, I am looking forward to trying one of these LCCs to Krabi!  Or maybe I will take a cruise with my wife from Singapore to Thailand, and stop at different towns along the way to take in the beautiful sights and sounds of Thailand.

The Thai community here has made significant contributions to Singapore.  And of course, many Singaporeans love Thai food.  Thai fruits and vegetables are very popular.  One of the most successful events that the Embassy organises every year is the Thai Festival.  And I hear that this year, the Embassy plans to celebrate SG50 with us by organising a jazz concert at the Gardens by the Bay!
 
The ongoing SEA Games is also a good platform for our athletes and supporters to get to know one another.  Thailand always does very well in the SEA Games.  Already it has won many gold medals including in canoeing, judo, petanque and shooting.  And your football team won yesterday’s match against Vietnam to top the group and enter the semi-finals.  And I am sure at the end of the Games, we will see Thailand high up the medal tally.  I understand that Your Excellency is attending a SEA Games match tomorrow.  I wish Thailand every success, unless of course, you are playing against Singapore.

Your Excellency and Professor Naraporn will be visiting the Singapore Botanic Gardens tomorrow and we will have an Orchid named after you – the Dendrobium Prayut Naraporn Chan-o-cha.  It is a vigorous and free flowering orchid hybrid.  I saw a photograph of it.  I think it is a good purple Thai colour.   It symbolises the relationship between Singapore and Thailand – a relationship that keeps growing and blooming.  I hope when you see the orchid, you will like the orchid.
  
Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, may I now invite you to rise and join me in a toast to
a.    The good health of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej and Her Majesty Queen Sirikit;
b.    The peace and prosperity of Thailand; and 
c.    The continued friendship between our countries.

Cheers!

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