Japanese foreign minister to visit Thailand

BANGKOK, June 21 (TNA) -- Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono will officially visit Thailand on June 26-28 to meet his Thai counterpart and co-host the Third Ministerial Meeting of the Conference on Cooperation among East Asian Countries for Palestinian Development (CEAPAD III). Busadee Santipitaks, spokesperson of the Foreign Ministry, said Mr Kono would meet Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai on June 27 to discuss bilateral and regional cooperation and international issues including the development of the Mekong Subregion under the framework of the Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (ACMECS). They would also discuss Thailand’s roles as the chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations next year and situations in the Rakhine State and the Korean Peninsula. On the same day, the Japanese foreign minister would also meet Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, Ms Busadee said. Regarding the CEAPAD III, the spokesperson said Japan initiated it in 2013 as a forum on the economic and social development of Palestine to promote peace in the Middle East. Thailand together with Japan conducted several training sessions on tourism for Palestinian personnel as Palestine requested, Ms Busadee said. (END)