RIYADH — Thailand has stepped up efforts to restore normal relations with Saudi Arabia, which were strained following the murder of four Saudi diplomats and a high-profile jewelry theft case involving a Thai worker in the 1980s.
“But now there is a renewed effort, as part of a proactive policy spearheaded by both political and economic aspects, to conclude the pending cases,” said Charn Jullamon, the newly appointed Thai charge d’affaires, here yesterday.
“The aim to normalize diplomatic relations by concluding the Blue Diamond theft case, the murder cases and the case of the disappearance of a Saudi businessman are on the top of the new Thai government’s agenda,” said Jullamon.
The diplomat said that the Foreign Ministry under Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej would be pro-active on these unsolved cases involving Saudis.
Thailand reopened in September the investigation into the long-unsolved killings, a case that deeply soured relations between the two countries.
The Thai Department of Special Investigation — Thailand’s equivalent of the FBI — said that it has now set up a new team to review the deaths of the five Saudi nationals, including three diplomats in 1989 and 1990, as well as to probe afresh the unsolved diamond-theft case, according to a report published recently.
The report said that the legendary Blue Diamond was among several valuable stones and jewelry pieces stolen by Thai national Kriangkrai Techamong in the 1980s from a royal palace, where he was employed as a gardener. Kriangkrai allegedly shipped the stolen objects to Thailand and then returned home. An investigation led to the seizure of the jewels by Thai police, but when the items were returned to Riyadh, many turned out to be fakes, including the diamond.
Jullamon said the two kingdoms are losing a lot because of the continuing strained relations. Thailand has already lost more than $700 million in trade and labor export opportunities so far. This is despite the fact that the two countries have a lot in common to share. Restrictions on Saudis traveling to Thailand shut out lucrative tourism revenue for the Southeast Asian country.
The Thai diplomat pointed out that the Saudi imports from Thailand total $1 billion annually despite the sour relations and continuing restrictions on visas.
“The Thai government is also working on a Saudi proposal to open air routes between the Chinese city of Shanghai and Bangkok to enable thousands of Saudi travelers to visit Thailand,” said the diplomat. “We are also working on a plan to bring Thai business mission this year. The Thai missions in Riyadh and Jeddah cumulatively issued 40,000 visas to Saudi businessmen and tourists in 2007.”
Lanka Travel Warning
The Saudi Embassy in Colombo yesterday urged citizens not to travel to Sri Lanka because of the unstable security situation in the South Asian country, the Saudi Press Agency reported. The travel ban comes following a series of explosions and suicide bombings that hit the country recently. The embassy urged Saudis who cannot avoid travel to Sri Lanka to be extra cautious.
