JEDDAH: Thai expatriates celebrated the 81st birth anniversary of their King Bhumibol Adulyadej, which is also observed as National Day, with an official reception hosted by their Consul General Praphat Chantaharn on Wednesday night. Ali bin Ahmad Gazzaz, director-general of protocol department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Makkah, was the chief guest at the event held at the Jeddah InterContinental Hotel, which was attended by UAE Consul General and Dean of Consular Corps Mohammad Ali Omran Al-Shamsi, other local officials, diplomats and businessmen.
The Thai diplomat expressed his gratitude to the Kingdom for enabling 13,000 of his country’s pilgrims arrive here for this year’s Haj. The last two charter flights carrying the pilgrims arrived late Wednesday night, following the resumption of regular air services from Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport. The airport reopened after anti-government protesters ended an eight-day siege.
Chantaharn said the two countries had been enjoying their diplomatic relations since 1957. “Since then, the bilateral economic cooperation has significantly expanded,” he said. In 2007, the trade volume between the two countries reached $6 billion. This year it is expected to increase significantly. In fact, the trade volume for the period from January to October 2008 has already reached $9 billion, he added. He said the Thai king was the world’s longest reigning monarch who provided leadership, inspiration and wisdom to his countrymen since he acceded to the throne on June 9, 1946.
TIME magazine in its issue on Nov. 13, 2006 described the Thai king as an Asian hero who has inspired the Thai people during his six decades on the throne, said the consul general who held a separate celebration exclusively for the community at his residence earlier in the week.
