Marcos commends Thai envoy for strengthening PH-Thailand relations

President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr. meets with outgoing Thai Ambassador Tull Traisorat during his farewell call at Malacañang on February 5, 2025. Photo courtesy of Revoli S. Cortez/PPA POOL

MANILA, Philippines – President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. expressed gratitude to outgoing Thai Ambassador Tull Traisorat for his efforts to strengthen the diplomatic and economic relations of the Philippines and Thailand.

“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you for everything you have done to bring our countries closer. Thailand and the Philippines have forged many new agreements and many new alliances in the past years,” Marcos said in a statement.

Marcos highlighted key areas of cooperation between the two nations, particularly in post-pandemic recovery, economic policies, and diplomatic engagements.

He said under Traisorat’s tenure, the Philippines and Thailand signed multiple agreements covering various sectors, including air services, agriculture, trade, defense logistics, and the prevention of illicit trafficking.

The two countries also maintain a visa-free agreement and partnerships in tourism and cultural exchange, he added.

READ: Marcos cites PH’s diplomatic gains in Vin d’Honneur

The Presidential Communications Office (PCO) emphasized that Thailand remains one of the Philippines’ key economic partners.

“Total trade between the two nations amounted to $10.81 billion, with $2.93 billion in Philippine exports and $7.87 billion in Philippine imports,” the PCO said in the same statement.

It also reported that remittances from overseas Filipino workers in Thailand totaled $64.72 million, with 32,950 Filipinos living and working there as of October 2023.

The PCO noted that the Philippines and Thailand will mark 76 years of diplomatic relations in 2025.

Formal ties between the two nations were established on June 14, 1949.