Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha vowed Wednesday to increase trade with Russia fivefold within five years.
He was speaking at the Thai-Russia Business Dialogue held Wednesday during his official visit to Russia where he took the largest ever delegation of cabinet ministers and business representatives on an overseas trip to meet their Russian counterparts.
Last year, Thailand and Russia had a total trade value of US$2.3 billion (81.9 billion baht) and the PM said he now wanted to increase that by five times in the next five years, said deputy government spokesman Werachon Sukhondhapatipak who provided a summary of the event to the Thai media.
Although Thailand was affected by the sluggish global economy last year, the country is working to maintain steady growth in its gross domestic product, Gen Prayut told those present.
This year, he said, the Thai economy is projected to grow 3%-3.5%, thanks to domestic consumption, tourism and government spending mainly in the form of investment in infrastructure under an eight-year 1.7 trillion baht development scheme.
The government is focusing primarily on economic reforms, with a goal to spur and sustain economic growth so Thailand can remain competitive with the rest of the world, said Gen Prayut.
Thailand has a range of privileges on offer for Russian investors interested in investment opportunities, he said.
The Board of Investment of Thailand, for instance, can offer corporate tax waivers for up to eight years to Russian investors who also would be granted permission to obtain ownership of the land that would be used for their businesses in Thailand, said Gen Prayut.
Russian tourists visiting Thailand in the first quarter formed the fourth largest group, he added.