Thai PM visits Poland, Turkey July 3-6

BANGKOK, July 3 (TNA) - Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra is visiting Poland and Turkey from July 3-6, aimed mainly to explore more rooms for trade and investment between Thailand and the two European nations. Yingluck told reporters on Wednesday morning, prior to her departure from Thailand's Suvarnabhumi International Airport, that Poland has not been affected by economic problems in the European Union (EU), while Turkey is a potential market for Thai halal food products. Yingluck acknowledged that her visit to Poland is the first-ever for a Thai prime minister to the stable European nation, which is safe from the persistent economic crisis in the EU and is, therefore, a potential market. According to the prime minister, Thai business operators have invested in processing agricultural products in Poland and she hopes to further expand areas of investment and to encourage cultural and musical exchanges. For Turkey, the prime minister said that it is also the first visit for a Thai prime minister in eight years and she sees the country as another potential market, as it is a gateway between Europe and Asia, and that Turkey, a member of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), has always supported Thailand and understood the situation in the violence-plagued Thai far South. As the Board of Trade of Thailand and the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) will sign cooperation agreements with authorities in the two countries during her visits this week, Premier Yingluck assessed that her ongoing trips should not only boost government-to-government relations between Thailand and the two European nations, but also increase communication channels for the private sector in several areas, covering academic cooperation, which should further boost bilateral relations, as well as the value of trade and investment and the number of tourists. (TNA)