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Thai Prime Minister Calls for Greater Regional Cooperation
Visiting Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra called upon Asian countries to rethink economic development strategy and join hands together to overcome current difficulties and work for a brighter and more prosperous future.
Delivering a speech at a public lecture organized by Singapore' s Institute of Southeast Asian Studies here Thursday, the prime minister said that Asian countries today face similar problems in keeping up with changes brought about by globalization, continue to face common problems of "declining agricultural prices, cyclical demand for our goods, and minimal pricing power."
Therefore, the time has arrived for Asian countries to rethink their respective approaches towards economic development and recovery while seeking greater regional cooperation, he said.
Commenting on the current economic downturn in Asia, he said that the current difficult times of looming recession is an ideal opportunity for Thailand and other Asian countries to undergo a much-needed period of consolidation.
"We all should use this duration to check and overhaul the separate engines of our economic growth, namely the different sectors of the economy," he added.
He affirmed that economic groupings can enable the member countries to effectively pool their resources for the benefit of the groupings as a whole and countries no longer have the choice to stand alone in isolation from the rest of the world.
The prime minister stressed that Asian countries must join hands together to assist one another through current difficult times in order to have a brighter and more prosperous future.
"If we are to reinforce Asia's dynamism as a meaningful partner to the rest of the world, we must increase our dialogues and cooperation at the bilateral, sub-regional and regional levels," he pointed out.
Highlighting the importance of cooperation among Asian countries, he said that "Asia's future will depend on our capacity to cooperate and interact with one another as a region while developing a sense of community and interdependence."
"The times require us to rely more on our own resources, to draw strength from one another and to promote greater intra- regional trade for our mutual benefit," he added.
He also underscored that prosperity in Southeast Asia depends not only on close bilateral cooperation but also an Asia-wide partnership.
He proposed to move forward the idea of Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD), saying the ACD "reflects the much-awaited need to build upon a common agenda of shared priorities, linking Southeast Asia, Northeast Asia and South Asia.
Thaksin was here on an two-day official visit to Singapore and has left for home this evening.
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