UAE Says It Will Boost Ties With Thailand Despite Thaksin Issue

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UAE says it will boost ties with Thailand despite Thaksin issue

Jintana Panyaarvudh,

Somroutai Sapsomboon

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

The United Arab Emirates looks forward to stronger diplomatic ties with Thailand even though former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra has taken up residence in Dubai on selfimposed exile.

"I want to say that the UAE has a very strong relationship with Thailand in all fields - tourism, politics. Our mission is how to get a stronger relationship with Thailand," said Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE's foreign minister.

Despite the sensitive Thaksin issue, discussions are underway to raise the relationship to a new level, he told a conference organised by the UAE's National Media Council as part of 40th National Day celebrations.

The UAE and Thailand established diplomatic relations in 1975 and have been trade partners since. Thailand buys mostly crude oil from the federation - 33 per cent of its total needs each year. Thousands of Emiratis visit Thailand each year for medical treatment and on tourism.

It seems that the UAE's relations with Thailand hinge on fugitive Thaksin, who has been living in Dubai for at least two years.

However, Abdullah declined to comment on whether the relationship between the two countries would improve after Thaksin's sister Yingluck became the prime minister.

"It's a Thai affair," he said.

When his Thai counterpart Surapong Towichukchaikul paid an official visit late last month, they discussed many matters including economic issues and explored ways to enhance the relationship regarding such issues as extradition and a treaty on visa exemptions for the diplomats of the two countries, he said.

"We have talked about how we will implement the treaty and how effective it will be," he said. Abdullah is scheduled to visit Thailand next year.

Both countries also have strong labour relations. Surapong said during his trip to the UAE that Thailand would improve its relations with Middle Eastern countries especially concerning labour.

As part of the National Day celebrations, Saqr Ghobash Saeed Ghobash, the UAE's labour minister, said his ministry had proposed setting up a national qualification authority to set and evaluate standards for workers entering the UAE labour market.

The authority would ensure the country had enough qualified manpower, including unskilled workers, when it is established next year after it is approved by the president.

One of the ministry's key challenges is trying to encourage government agencies to recruit unskilled workers in the country to solve the unemployment problem.

"The first priority is to open jobs for local people as part of our 'Emiratisation' policy especially for lowskilled workers, then expats. We also try to encourage that policy for the private sector," he said.

The UAE has almost 4 million foreign workers, half of whom are unskilled, according to Ghobash. The top three sources are the Philippines, India and Bangladesh. About 200,000 Emiratis are jobless.

The new policies could affect foreign workers but Thai authorities were quite optimistic.

"It would not affect us because Thai workers there receive some training in certain skills and are physically tougher than Emiratis," said Prawit Kiangphon, directorgeneral of the Employment Department.

About 6,0007,000 Thais are working in the UAE, which is a small presence compared with other Middle East countries. For example, there are more than 10,000 Thais in Kuwait. Some 400,000 Thais work all over the world, earning up to Bt60 billion a year.

Ghobash said he believed in open markets and competition, and the right also for businesses to choose their workers.

"That's why you can see that there are almost 200 nationalities in our labour market," he said.

"We don't have particular policies to encourage certain nationalities [to work here]. The chances for Thais and others depend on a lot of conditions such as the variety of skills, salaries and other things and benefits in this market," he said.

The difference in salaries between the public and private sectors in the UAE is quite large, sometimes more than 50 per cent. The country usually compensates its own people through publicsector salaries. That's why salaries are slightly higher in the public sector.

Within the Gulf Cooperation Council, the UAE pays a little more in wages than some other GCC countries.

"Qatar, the UAE and Kuwait may be close to one another [in wages], then Saudi Arabia and Bahrain and Oman," Ghobash said.

-- The Nation 2011-12-06

[MengWan]

The money from the most corrupt (f.i. Afghanistan) finds itself a safe place there, I think they would like to have a greater share of Thaïland !

[Oberkommando]

How many Thais are working in Saudi Arabia?

Edited December 6, 2011 by Oberkommando

[hammered]

Probably boosting ties because of Thaksin right now. It would have been harder under a Democrat government I would have thought

[sparebox2]

Thailand have to be careful dealing with UAE. Afterall this country shelter a Thai fugitive.

[osiboy]

does that mean it will be even more difficult to dodge all the arab " kerb crawlers " to get to the beach from now on ??

[soidog52]

6 billion Thais in UAE? Wow!

[bkkjames]

Amazing number - 60007000 : wake up! Can't blame math on poor english can you?