The Commerce Ministry is vowing to seek new markets to diversify border trade, as ongoing tensions between Thailand and Cambodia have severely affected cross-border trade.
Vice Minister, Dr. Kirida Bhaopichitr, noted that trade can still proceed via sea and air routes, but she stressed that the urgent priority is to broaden Thailand’s trading partnerships.
“Our trade with Cambodia accounts for around 4% of our total foreign trade, but those in the provinces or along the border may be affected the most because their livelihoods rely on cross-border commerce. The government is trying to take care of those businesses at the border and minimise the impacts on them,” Kirida said.
Given current geo-economic complexities, the Vice Minister suggested that Thailand pursue new free trade agreements, or FTAs, to boost trade volumes. Thailand currently has 14 FTAs with its trading partners and Kirida said that the FTA with non-EU European members will come into force within four months.
“The EFTA has already been signed and is awaiting implementation, which we believe will take place within four months. We also signed agreements with Bhutan and Sri Lanka this year. As for the Thailand–EU FTA, we are still in negotiations with the EU. A Thailand–South Korea FTA is also in the pipeline,” she said.
Reflecting on her recent meetings with her counterparts at various international summits, she noted that Thailand has significant opportunities, as countries aim at reducing their dependence on both China and the United States, adding that Thailand can be a strong and reliable trading partner.
As most ASEAN countries are export-driven economies, she emphasised that Thailand, with its strong infrastructure and robust supply chains, is well positioned to become an important hub for companies realigning their supply chains.
On the regional front, she noted that the ASEAN–China FTA was upgraded at the ASEAN Summit 2025 to include more sectors, such as digital products and services.
“There was also an upgrade of the ASEAN trade framework itself, to include several products that were not covered 10 years ago,” she said.
By Franc Han Shih, Thai PBS World
Full interview with Vice Minister, Dr. Kirida Bhaopichitr:
