Pita Limjaroenrath, leader of the Move Forward Party, promises to revive Thailand's leadership role in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to address burning issues.
ASEAN brings together 10 states with a total population of over 670 million people, making it one of the largest markets in the world.
Pita, who is Thailand's top candidate for prime minister and heads the "Move Forward" party, discussed his plans for ASEAN at a meeting with a senior official from the World Economic Forum (WEF) on Saturday. Pita and Preet Wacharasin, Head of the Move Forward External Affairs Committee, met with Joo-Ok Lee, who is in charge of the World Economic Forum's Asia-Pacific agenda. They discussed possible cooperation between Thailand and the WEF.
The meeting also discussed the possibility of holding the annual meeting of the WEF in Thailand. Thailand last hosted the WEF meeting in 2012. Thailand can become a platform for international meetings for WEF participants dedicated to the digital and creative economies.
Pita told Lee that the future "Move Forward" government will revive Thailand's leading role in ASEAN and work to mitigate violence in Myanmar. Thailand has so far kept quiet about the atrocities committed by the junta in Myanmar, saying it adheres to the so-called ASEAN hands-off policy, which forbids association members from interfering in the internal politics of other members.
The "Move Forward" government also plans to rebalance Thailand's position in international politics to avoid being too closely aligned with one superpower. Thailand is seeking to play a more active role in international politics by unifying and increasing the economic weight of ASEAN, Pita said.
A stronger ASEAN will promote human development in Thailand and improve the country's economic competitiveness, Pita stressed. He also stated that his government would eliminate the influence of the military on politics, destroy or weaken monopolies, and decentralize administrative power.
