‘Our countries are missing out on vast opportunities

Interview: with H.E. Mr Nabil Hussein Ashri, Chargé d’Affaires for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to Thailand

Exclusive interview by Maxmilian Wechsler


BACKGROUND: Curse of the Blue Diamond
 
THE incident that caused the continuing 20-year rift in relations between Thailand and Saudi Arabia is often called the Blue Diamond Affair. It began in 1989 when a Thai worker, Kriangkrai Techamong, stole jewelry and other invaluable gems from the palace of Prince Faisal Bin Fahd, where he was employed as a janitor. Kriangkrai, who had access to the princess’s bedroom, hid the stolen jewelry in a vacuum cleaner bag. The haul included a valuable Blue diamond and other gems, which Kriangkrai shipped back to his home in Lampang province, Thailand.

Riyadh then decided to downgrade relations due to lack of progress and failure of Thai authorities at that time to take appropriate measures to solve these crimes.

The contracts of all highly skilled Thai labor in Saudi Arabia were terminated, and Saudi citizens were barred from travelling to Thailand in light of the risk posed to their lives after the murder crimes and the fact that no suspects have been named or apprehended.

Relations between the two countries became inactive, affecting cooperation, trade, investment and business greatly. Even today there is very limited export-import based trading between Saudi Arabia and Thailand. Tourism inflow from Saudi Arabia to Thailand, which was once a major destination for us, is insignificant today.

Despite these tremendous losses, damages and missed opportunities, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s stable and clear foreign policy has allowed for some activities to continue. For example, because the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the guardian of the Holy sites and with disregard to the state of its relations with any country in the world, Thai Muslims are able to perform their Holy ritual in the Kingdom every year and are given all the support and assistance by the Saudi Authorities.
 
In 2001, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques sponsored over 1,000 Thai Muslim pilgrims to perform Hajj. Also, every year the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques grants special extra Hajj visa quota for Thai Muslims as needed. During the tragic 2004 tsunami in Thailand, the Saudi Government sent its condolences and provided humanitarian assistance, worth one million US dollars, to Tsunami-affected communities. Saudi Airlines also carried aid and relief supplies to areas affected by the catastrophe.

What is the status of all the cases?

The pending cases have been given much attention in local and foreign media lately. Also, I think the current status of all the cases is not much different than all the information already known and published by the media. 

How is the current cooperation of both countries in terms of business, trade, culture and tourism?

Cooperation in business, trade, culture, tourism and other fields has been minimal over the past 20 years, and is limited by the state of relations. In reality, there has not been any change over the years. Although people in both countries have been eager to continue expanding business and trade, the obstacle of the cases and downgraded relations remain a major hurdle. Some of the official efforts in this field notably include a visit by the Chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries and delegates to Saudi Arabia in 2005, where the delegation was welcomed by the Saudi Chambers of Commerce and several relevant government agencies. Also in 2008 a delegation headed to the Kingdom in an effort to promote tourism.

What about tourism?

I believe I can safely say that once upon a time, Thailand was one of the top destinations for Saudi tourists; unfortunately the incidents (mentioned earlier) have since interrupted this growing flow of tourists as well as development of any market alliances or exploration of possible promotion activities between the two countries. Saudi tourists remain among the highest spenders around the world. In 2009 alone the number of outbound tourists from the Kingdom was estimated at 4.1 million people staying over 45.4 million nights and spending approximately $4.9 billion. One might ponder how these numbers would affect both Saudi Arabia and Thailand today.

How would you describe your relations with Thai officials?

Since my arrival in Thailand in 2006 I have been keen on making new friendships and connecting myself with as many people as possible. Being a member of the diplomatic corps this is quite normal. I enjoy very friendly and close relations with all Thai Government officials whom I have met during my mission here, and this of course helps me to accomplish important tasks and goals with respect to improving bilateral relations and boosting understanding between our countries.

Many officials equally share these goals and I have optimistically worked together with some of the warmest and dynamic people who sincerely wished to personally contribute to bringing our two countries closer. I frequently visit and receive many government officials who have become personal and close friends. Even if they are moved or promoted to another position, we continue to exchange invitations at social gatherings and activities of common interest.

How do you think the relations between Thailand and Saudi Arabia will finally turn out?

In my view, my hope for the future of bilateral relations between the two Kingdoms is the same as every Saudi and Thai citizen’s hope. Borders are getting closer than ever before, and people need to develop their relations with each other in order to benefit the most; cooperation is a key word in today’s world. So eventually I think that the people of both countries will finally realize that they need to develop their relations for closer economic, cultural, and strategic cooperation. Regional bodies such as the ACD, the recently formalized Asian-GCC dialogue, and AMED will also play a major and decisive role in the future as they require fully active relations between member countries in order to implement any form of formal cooperation and benefit the most from these forums and their objectives.

Today, Saudi Arabia is more than just an employer for Thai labour. Saudi Arabia has undergone great transformations. Its vast natural energy combined with the long-term vision and strategic planning of its Government has helped to create today’s stable, robust economy. Tens of billions of dollars are being continually invested into national development projects including the five Economic Cities that will create tomorrow’s most attractive investment platforms. There are many horizons to be exploited and explored for Thailand. Equally, in Thailand there are plenty of opportunities for Saudi Arabia such as advancement in medical tourism, high quality of manufactured goods, auto-production industry, research and other technological advances. Saudi tourists that once flooded the beautiful tourist attractions in Thailand are also keen to return to this favoured destination.

We continue to look forward to the day when both countries will resume full diplomatic relations and improve ties, which we hope will be soon.

What is Saudi Arabia’s foreign policy – both in politics and economic matters – with regard to Southeast Asian countries and ASEAN?

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s foreign policy is based on the principles of maintaining good friendly relations with all peace loving nations, and non interference in internal affairs of other countries. The shifting global political and economic realities have called for ever closer cooperation between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Southeast Asia, strengthening a wide-range of strategic partnerships, including energy and economic cooperation, and commitment to cooperate against terrorism, as well as seeking joint ventures to provide an organized framework to expand bilateral economic ties.

South East Asia is a region of evident economic importance; it is a region rich in many natural resources, growing technologies, human resources, and is also of global strategic importance. It is the bridge between the Indian and Pacific Oceans and controls vital sea-passages that give access to the Middle East and the eastern coasts of Africa. The relations between Saudi Arabia and South East Asia is historic and dates back as far as when traders traveled the silk road, and being aware of the recent economic achievements and success of this region the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in line with its foreign policy has embarked on expanding, solidifying, and strengthening these historic relations, while exploring new opportunities and horizons.

In 2006, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz, made a historic visit to the region. The official visit was considered as the most geopolitically significant visit and has played a major role in strengthening bilateral relations with Southeast Asian countries across broad political, economic and security spectrums. At that time it had been over 50 years since such a high level visit was carried out. The visit was most important in broader perspectives, besides its economic dimension, as it symbolizes recognition of the economic potential to be explored and the political stability the two regions have acquired in the international arena.

The visit has marked the birth of a new policy for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, for the first time to be called Saudi Arabia’s Look East policy, and laying the foundations for a strategic shift in foreign policy to reflect the latest developments in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Exploring new areas of cooperation and strengthening existing ones have been a focal point, including expanding Saudi Arabia investments in Southeast Asia (as well as inviting countries in the region to take advantage of the favorable investment climate and economic reforms in Saudi Arabia), and expanding bilateral investment on energy, infrastructure, and telecommunications. Saudi Arabia also encouraged technological, logistic, expert and skilled labor assistance as it works towards diversifying its economy. Other key areas include information technology, biotechnology, education, and small business development. 

Some of the Southeast Asian countries are Saudi Arabia’s biggest trading partners, with industrial goods increasingly displacing products from other regions in the Saudi markets, and this has led to consideration of free trade area negotiations with various emerging giant countries in the region. Changes on political, economic and foreign policies in both countries also established newer horizons to explore as Saudi Arabia engages more and more into Southeast Asia, and Thailand into the Middle East. Saudi Arabia in fact has ventured into Southeast Asian countries around Thailand establishing diplomatic relations in many countries in the region during the last two decades. Ultimately, because of the state of relations between Saudi Arabia and Thailand, both our countries unfortunately continue to miss out on vast bilateral opportunities.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as the guardian and site of the holy places at Mecca, and Medina also has strong interests in Muslim communities and Southeast Asia, and maintains its encouragement of peaceful coexistence with cultural dialogue calling for tolerance and moderation, while generously providing humanitarian assistance, education, and welfare programs throughout the region.

Cooperation between regional organizations has increasingly become an essential part of foreign policy.

How many Thai workers are now employed in your country?  What kind of work are they doing?

Saudi Arabia was the largest market for Thai overseas workers, numbering more than 450,000. Thai labour is undoubtedly one of the most skilled to enter the Saudi market.

As Saudi Arabia continued to invest tens of billions of dollars into national development projects and communications infrastructures, new transport routes, industrial complexes, and economic diversification programs, Thai labor was very much in demand. At present, there are probably less than 12,000 Thai workers in Saudi Arabia.

How many Thai students are studying in your country at this moment?

The Kingdom supports welfare projects directed towards students and local Muslim communities in cooperation with the Royal Thai Government, in addition to scholarships programs for Thai students. Scholarships are normally sponsored by the Government or the academic institutions after receiving official approval. According to the Thai Embassy in Riyadh, there are about 100 Thai students currently studying in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Do you have any idea when the Saudi Arabian Airlines will resume flights to Thailand?                                                                                       

In 2004, Saudi airlines announced suspension of its flights to Thailand due to financial losses. I think this resulted mainly from the travel ban of Saudi citizens to Thailand and a ban on Thai labour export to Saudi Arabia.

What has been your biggest achievement in Thailand so far?

I think that the Saudi cases have been slowly fading from public and official attention. The fact is, they are not forgotten, and continue to remain a major hurdle in developing bilateral relations between the two Kingdoms, which is why I consider that my biggest achievement has been to successfully bring bigger attention to these cases at official and public levels. I take the issue of restoring friendly relations between the two countries very seriously, which is why whenever and wherever I meet any government official I always bring up the subject.

Despite the internal problems of Thailand, I try to make daily meetings with officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other government agencies to follow up and discuss matters relating to the pending cases. Often when I visit government figures, they inform me that they already know what I am about to say. In my opinion I think my efforts have gathered enough momentum to encourage the government to act on the issue of solving the pending Saudi cases, since they have been overlooked for more than 20 years now. Although at least 17 successive Thai Governments have tried to reopen investigations in a bid to restore bilateral relations, none has proved successful or produced any solid or fruitful results.

What has been your biggest disappointment while being posted in Thailand?

To be honest, the past 20 years have been a great disappointment for everybody. During my time here I have been closely pursuing these cases and I have been disappointed on several occasions for a number of reasons. The political situation in Thailand has also been unstable for some time which meant delay or suspension of action relating to the pending cases. This also greatly disturbed the progress of investigation because government officials responsible were moved from their offices and new ones had to start all over again. I, of course, had to start my efforts all over again too, starting with meetings and discussions with new investigation teams and government officials. Many obligations and promises were made but unfortunately they have not been achieved, and that sometimes can be a big letdown, although I try to recover quickly and start all over again with a positive attitude.

What has been the most memorable experience during your assignment in Thailand? 

The most memorable experience for me in Thailand was the Royal ceremonies on the auspicious occasion of the 60th Anniversary of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s Accession to the Throne. It was a moving moment to witness the hundreds of thousands of Thais in yellow shirts and waving flags at the Royal Plaza. 

I humbly wish H.M. the King, H.M. the Queen and the Royal Family long life and happiness, and unity and prosperity for the people of Thailand.
 
What do you like and not like about Thailand?

Thailand with its people and culture is a very unique experience for me and I feel privileged and happy to have had the opportunity to actually live here and experience firsthand joyful and colorful moments not just as a tourist. I have learned a lot and I especially admire the very distinctive attitude of the Thai people, their hospitality, and friendliness. 

The environment outside the city is beautiful and I find that the service standards and facilities in Thailand are very advanced starting from resorts and recreation activities to shopping malls and medical institutions. I also enjoy the Thai cuisine and the variety of fruits.

About my dislikes - apart from battling daily traffic jams, though I no longer complain about them, I think having one long hot season all year around is something I don’t like.

Are you concerned for your security?

As a Muslim I believe that if God willing my life should come to end, then nothing in this world can stop that. So actually I am not afraid of anything. It is my duty to do what I am doing now, and if my mission is over for any reason, then a fellow colleague will continue this mission, because this matter is not personal - it’s between one country and another. Also, as a diplomat my primary objective - like any other diplomat in the world - is to serve my country and try to improve and strengthen relations with our host country. I find the Kingdom of Thailand a beautiful country to work in, and the people are very polite, warm, and friendly. However due to these unfortunate incidents that occurred more than 20 years ago, our two countries still do not enjoy the full benefits of bilateral relations.

What are your future plans?

For now I am concentrating mainly on efforts to improve bilateral relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Kingdom of Thailand, and this takes a lot of energy and time from my daily schedule. I hope that one day we will achieve this goal for the benefit of both nations. 

Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia, 82 Sengthong Thani Tower, Silom, Tel: 02 639 2999