BANGKOK — Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman arrived here on Thursday on an official visit to Thailand. At the Bangkok Air Base airport, the Crown Prince was received by Thailand's Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Prayut Chan-o-cha, and other leaders. An official reception ceremony was held in honor of the Crown Prince. During the ceremony, the Saudi royal anthem and the Thai national anthem were played, and the Crown Prince then inspected the guard of honor. Those who arrived in Bangkok, accompanying the Crown Prince, include Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman; Minister of State and Member of the Cabinet Prince Turki bin Muhammad bin Fahd; Minister of Interior Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Naif; Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan; Minister Commerce and Acting Minister of Media Dr. Majed Al-Qasabi; Minister of Investment Eng. Khalid Al-Falih; Minister of Human Resources and Social Development Eng. Ahmed Al-Rajhi; Secretary of the Crown Prince Dr. Bandar Al-Rasheed; and Deputy Chief of Royal Protocols Rakan Al-Tubaishi. This was for the first time a Saudi leader is making a high-profile official visit to Thailand in three decades. In January this year, Saudi Arabia and Thailand announced the resumption of diplomatic ties following more than 30 years of frozen relations. Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha visited Riyadh in January and held extensive talks with the Crown Prince. The importance of the Crown Prince's visit to Thailand lies in the fact that it is the first visit at the level of the Kingdom's leadership since the eruption of the crisis in bilateral relations and the return of relations between the two countries to normal in a way that serves the interests of the two kingdoms and their peoples. The visit of the Crown Prince coincides with the summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum, which will begin in Bangkok on Friday. During the two-day event, the Crown Prince will meet many global leaders who will participate in the economic summit. During the visit of the Thai prime minister to Riyadh in January 2022, the Kingdom welcomed the resumption of diplomatic ties between the two countries and the raising of the level of diplomatic representation between them from the level of Chargé d'Affairs to the level of an ambassador. Riyadh also reiterated its commitment to its right in previous cases, related to the tragic incidents that Saudi citizens were exposed to on Thai soil three decades ago. The Crown Prince arrived in Bangkok from Seoul after visiting South Korea and holding official talks with Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo. Earlier, in the first leg of his South East Asian visit, he attended G20 Summit in Bali, Indonesia on Nov. 15 and 16.
