According to Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit who met EUAmbassador to Thailand Pirkka Tapiola on June 14, the joint understandingdocument will be used as a framework for the FTA talks by the two governmentswhich are expected to commence next year.
The Government and the Commerce Ministry are serious topursue FTA talks with the EU, while the EU itself hopes that Thailand would bethe third ASEAN country to sign the pact after Vietnam and Singapore,Jurin said, adding once the agreement becomes effective, Thailand expects toenjoy trade and investment expansion because the EU is Thailand’s fifth largest tradingpartner after ASEAN, China, Japan and the US.
The FTA negotiations were put on hold after the 2014 coup in Thailand.
In 2020, bilateral trade totaled 33.1 billion USD, representing7.56 percent of Thailand's trade with the world. Thai exports to the EU were 17.6billion USD./.