03-18-2013, 11:27 AM
Seems Thailand wants in on some action too. Here come the PM, here comes the PM:
"Thai PM to visit PNG
THAI Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra is scheduled to visit Papua New Guinea and also New Zealand from March 21-25, 2013 at the invitations of the Prime Ministers of both nations.
Foreign Affairs Office, including the National Events Council office, advised Post-Courier on Friday that Ms Yingluck, on her visit as the Thai Prime Minister, will be giving food hygiene testing and disease detecting devices to the country as well as educational materials and memorabilia from Thailand to Papua New Guinea universities.
A statement from the Department of American and South Pacific Affairs Ministry of Foreign Affairs, also released yesterday, advised that Prime Minister Yingluck will bring a team of private sector and relevant agencies to PNG and New Zealand to study both countries’ strength, with a view to bringing the experience to boost the competitiveness of the Thai business sector.
Ms Yingluck is the first Thai leader to visit Papua New Guinea made at the invitation of Papua New Guinean counterpart Peter O’Neill.
PNG is also Thailand’s no.1 trading partner in the South Pacific and is eyed as prospective market of raw materials due to its abundant natural resources, be it forests, oil or marine lives.
Prime Minister O’Neill will travel to Japan on Tuesday this week for an official visit for a week and will return to the country to await the visit of the Thai Leader.
A detailed program on the visit will be released once the National Events Council and the relevant authorities complete the scheduled visit by Ms Yingluck."
