National —
Thailand and China have reached an agreement to waive visa requirements for their citizens, a move aimed at boosting travel and tourism between the two nations.
According to reports, the signing of the mutual visa exemption agreement, which will come into effect on March 1st, took place recently between Minister of Foreign Affairs Parnpree Bahiddha-nukara and his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi.
The new visa-free policy is expected to enhance people-to-people exchanges and aid in the recovery of Thailand’s tourism sector, traditionally a key component of Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy.
Chinese nationals form the largest group of visitors to Thailand. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a sharp decline in visitors from Asia’s largest economy to Thailand, dropping from 11 million in 2019 to just 3.5 million last year.
In addition to the visa agreement, both China and Thailand committed to accelerating the construction of the China-Thailand railway and collaborating in the fight against transnational crimes.
The preceding is a press release from the Thai Government PR Department.
