New Thailand PM thanks Modi for greetings, urges strengthening ties

In a post on X, Paetongtarn Shinawatra thanked PM Narendra Modi for his warm congratulatory message. She expressed her eagerness to collaborate closely with him to enhance bilateral relations, focusing on trade, investment, culture, people-to-people connections, and tourism, particularly by increasing air travel between the two countries.

New Delhi: Thailand’s newly elected Prime Minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, expressed her gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday for his congratulatory message following her recent election victory.

In a post on social media platform X, Paetongtarn Shinawatra wrote, “Thank you PM Narendra Modi for your warm congratulatory message.”

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“I look forward to working closely with you to further strengthen our bilateral relations, especially in the areas of trade and investment, culture, people-to-people contact, and tourism, in particular, to increase air travel between both countries,” she further wrote.

Expressing her hope for further strengthening the bilateral ties between India and Thailand, the newly-elected Prime Minister said, “I am confident that we can build upon our existing ties and explore untapped potentials to create even greater opportunities for our two countries, peoples, and beyond.”

Earlier, PM Modi had congratulated Paetongtarn Shinawatra on her victory.

“Congratulations Paetongtarn Shinawatra on your election as the Prime Minister of Thailand. Best wishes for a very successful tenure. Look forward to working with you to further strengthen the bilateral ties between India and Thailand, that are based on the strong foundations of civilisational, cultural and people-to-people connect,” he said in a post on X.

Paetongtarn Shinawatra, 37, was elected as Thailand’s Prime Minister on August 16, making her the second youngest woman to hold the position in Thai history. She follows in the footsteps of her father and aunt, becoming the third member of the Shinawatra family to serve as Prime Minister of Thailand.

Her aunt, Yingluck Shinawatra, was Thailand’s first female Prime Minister and the country’s youngest in over 60 years before being removed from office on May 7, 2014, by a Constitutional Court decision.

Paetongtarn Shinawatra’s election came after a court-ruled dismissal of then-Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin in an ethics violation case on August 14. Both Paetongtarn and former Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin are from the Pheu Thai Party. Shinawatra had finished second in the 2023 elections.