China, Thailand sign mutual visa waiver agreements
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (left) and Thai Foreign Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara shake hands during a signing ceremony of the agreement on mutual visa exemption at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Bangkok, Thailand, on January 28, 2024.
Thailand and China agreed on Sunday to waive visa requirements for each other's nationals to facilitate travel and tourism between the two countries.
Thai Foreign Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-nukara and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi signed the mutual visa exemption, which takes effect on March 1, at a ceremony after meeting in Bangkok.
"This visa-free era will bring people-to-people exchanges to a new height," Wang told a joint press conference.
China was a top source for Thailand's tourism industry, a major driver of Southeast Asia's second-largest economy.
"There will be a big increase in the number of Chinese tourists visiting Thailand," Wang said.
Beijing and Bangkok also pledged to speed up the construction of the China-Thailand railway and work together in combating transnational crimes, Wang said.
