The Committee on Economic Development is working with the foreign and commerce ministries to deal with the ramifications of the government's deportation of Uyghurs on free trade negotiations with the European Union (EU).
The committee held a meeting on Thursday about the matter with representatives from both ministries, related private companies, the Thai Chamber of Commerce (TCC) and the Federation of Thai SMEs.
Sittiphol Viboonthanakul, a People's Party (PP) list-MP and chairman of the committee, said before the meeting that the deportations would affect Thailand's international trade dynamics because the EU has condemned the government's actions. However, the degree of the impact is uncertain.
He further highlighted the need to assess whether this situation could delay the signing of a free trade agreement (FTA) with the EU, which is expected within this year, and impact Thailand's ongoing efforts to join the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). He also suggested that the discussion would cover concerns over US trade policies, including possible higher tariffs on Thai exports.
When asked whether the government's invitation to European ambassadors to join a discussion on the deportation issue will help mitigate impacts, Mr Sittiphol affirmed that the government will try its best to minimise them.
He also highlighted the need for the government to develop a strategy to deal with a trade war and consequences that could arise if the Thailand-EU FTA is not signed this year as expected.
It was reported that TCC representatives asserted during the meeting that Thailand has consistently adhered to international human rights standards.
They pointed out that over the past decade, Thailand has worked to address international concerns, such as illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing issues.
Furthermore, in recent discussions with international economic organisations, the Uyghur deportation case was not a significant topic of concern, said the representatives.
They also stressed that deportations are a common practice globally, citing similar cases in the US and Europe.
They argued that this matter should not be included in the FTA negotiations.
