Addis Ababa — Ethiopia and Thailand have agreed to boost their bilateral cooperation to a higher level, according to the foreign ministry.
Ethiopian Ambassador Tizita Mulugeta met with Darm Boontham, Director General for South Asia, Middle East and Africa Affairs at Thailand’s Foreign Ministry.
The Ambassador and the Director General discussed ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation between Ethiopia and Thailand.
On this occasion, Ambassador Tizita briefed the Director General on the current situation in Ethiopia, particularly the historical background and triggering factors of the conflict in Northern Ethiopia and the belligerent nature of the TPLF.
She then addressed the trilateral negotiation on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, underscoring Ethiopia’s unwavering commitment to resume the African Union-led process.
In terms of strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries in a wide range of areas, Ambassador Tizita reminded the Director General of the discussion held earlier during her working visit to Thailand to revive the various draft agreements and the technical cooperation between the two countries which have remained at the level of document exchange, such as the establishment of bilateral high-level political consultation, visa exemption for diplomatic passport holders, a draft cultural cooperation agreement as well as tourism cooperation agreements.
Darm Boontham, for his part, thanked the Ambassador for the general briefing and appreciated the government’s efforts to resolve the conflict peacefully under the leadership of the African Union.
He expressed Thailand’s interest in strengthening the long-standing relationship between the two countries and reaffirmed the need to expedite and implement the various agreements exchanged between the two countries.
He mentioned the importance of the AU-led negotiations on the GERD to resolve outstanding issues between the riparian states.
Finally, Ambassador Tizita had a brief meeting with Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai.
The two sides discussed the current situation in Ethiopia as well as consolidating bilateral relations and pursuing cooperation on mutual concerns at the multilateral level.
