Envoy Rues State Of Thai-Saudi Ties

[webfact]

Envoy rues state of Thai-Saudi ties

Nuthatai Chotechuang

Nation Channel

Nabil Ashri still optimistic as his term ends, but calls for govt to be 'more serious' about tackling unsolved cases

BANGKOK: - After 21 years and 17 Thai governments, nothing significant has changed as far as troubled Thai-Saudi relations are concerned.

Nabil Ashri, head of mission at the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia, is ending his term here knowing that if he has been more optimistic than his predecessors about the ties, there were good reasons for their having been such pessimists.

Known as the friendliest and most positive Saudi envoy to Thailand in modern times, he gave a telltale answer when asked what had been the toughest of his six and a half years in the Kingdom.

"Every year," he said, adding: "In 2006, there was the coup. In 2007, the yellow shirts rallied. In 2008, the red shirts rallied, and they did so again in 2009 and 2010. Last year it was the floods."

With revolving-door Thai governments preoccupied with political and natural turbulence, and with a new foreign minister almost every year, the envoy has been practically chasing shadows in his bid to solve key issues delaying the normalisation of bilateral ties.

"I know every [Thai] government has its own internal problems. That's why I believe nobody was serious enough to solve the problems with Saudi Arabia. [Thai authorities] started to become more serious two years ago, and then things slowed down a little bit after some officials moved to other posts. And sometimes I couldn't meet the officials at all, like during the flooding and the red-yellow shirts' rallies," he said.

Still-missing Saudi jewellery and the unsolved murder cases involving Saudi officials and a high-profile businessman have blocked normalisation. The envoy had expected big progress in the investigation into these matters, but he is leaving Thailand feeling frustrated.

"Saudi Arabia only wants justice. We want to know who did it and why, so we can tell our people. And I want to see the Thai government become really serious about it," he said.

Strong as these words sound, he has issued angrier statements during his term.

"There are three cases, and those three cases are [equally] important for us. Of course, if it happened to Thai citizens, I want to know what you would feel and what the Thai government would do. I'm sure they would do more than what we have done.

"Yes, Saudi Arabia needs Thai skilled workers, but first of all, we want to solve the problems, and we know the Thai government can do so, if they are more serious [about it]. Saudi Arabia is looking east, and we would love to have more investment in Thailand in the private sector, and also government-to-government," he said.

He reiterated that his country would certainly welcome back Thai labour when bilateral relations improved.

"Thai skilled workers are among the best who came to work with us. We enjoy having Thai labour very much, and the Saudi market would love to see Thai workers come back," he said.

His successor is likely to face a similar situation, as the Thai political crisis drags on and tends always to overshadow diplomatic issues like the ones with Saudi Arabia.

The outgoing envoy's advice is for whoever replaces him to be patient yet serious in pushing for solutions to the bilateral impasse.

"Be serious, honest with the Thais, and show them exactly how important Thailand is to Saudi Arabia, and how important Saudi Arabia is to Thailand. Show them the benefits that both countries can get from a good relationship," he said in relation to what he wants his successor to do.

When asked if, after six and a half years here, he remained optimistic the Thai government can finally solve the cases, he said: "I will still be optimistic until the cases are solved."

-- The Nation 2012-06-14

[Pseudolus]

"Be serious, honest with the Thais, and show them exactly how important Thailand is to Saudi Arabia, and how important Saudi Arabia is to Thailand. Show them the benefits that both countries can get from a good relationship,"

Ummm - so the Saudis need rice, and in return Thailand gets what exactly ? Saudis don't usually hand out cash without some other "interesting" conditions attached.

[LucidLucifer]

The envoy had expected big progress in the investigation into these matters, but he is leaving Thailand feeling frustrated.

Six and a half years here and he still hasn't realised that the BiB are a police force only in name.

[geriatrickid]

"Be serious, honest with the Thais, and show them exactly how important Thailand is to Saudi Arabia, and how important Saudi Arabia is to Thailand. Show them the benefits that both countries can get from a good relationship,"

Ummm - so the Saudis need rice, and in return Thailand gets what exactly ? Saudis don't usually hand out cash without some other "interesting" conditions attached.

OIL, It's as simple as that.

Look at the current oil sources now in the region and its obvious that some countries have an advantage.

Iran is the most important oil supplier for India, China, South Korea and Japan. Iran has been forced to sell its oil at below market prices and the Indians and Chinese have squeezed the Iranians pretty hard. The cheap oil prices have benefied Thailand's major regional competitors. With cheap energy, agricultural production costs are less. An example is India' flooding of rice on the market, China is able to offer its industries lower energy costs than Thailand and that means China has a cost advantage. It's incredible that Walmart in North America stocks frozen vegetables obtained from China. It should be Thailand's produce that's in super markets, but high energy prices undercut Thailand's competitiveness. Before anyone says, but Thailand has natural gas, remember that oil is also a major component of chemicals, synthetics, fertilizers etc. Thailand is also obliged to import most of its coal and that coal is dirty and not as efficient as oil. Without that coal, Thailand's power generating plants would shut down and Thailand would end up with rolling blackouts. The cement industry is dependent upon that coal as well.

For the sake of Thailand's national security and economic growth, it needs secure energy supplies and that means trying to get oil from Saudi Arabia and its gulf state allies.

Edited June 14, 2012 by geriatrickid

[waza]

All over a blue diamond............

Two decades ago, a Thai gardener climbed into the palace of a Saudi prince through a second-story window, busted open a safe with a screwdriver and stole some 200 pounds of jewelry. The former Saudi chargé d'affaires in Bangkok told the Washington Post that the gardener stuffed "rubies the size of chicken eggs" in his vacuum-cleaner bag, along with a huge, nearly flawless blue diamond, which at 50 carats would be one of the largest blue diamonds in the world.

Read more: http://www.time.com/...l#ixzz1xjHIMFdr

Edited June 14, 2012 by waza

[Awk]

The envoy had expected big progress in the investigation into these matters, but he is leaving Thailand feeling frustrated.

Six and a half years here and he still hasn't realised that the BiB are a police force only in name.

It is bordering on retarded to imagine that a top-ranking diplomat from SA would not realise that, and many other things about this case that most of us will never know. What you don't seem to realise is that no diplomat would ever state such a realisation in public.

[spidermike007]

Nice to see someone tell it like it is. We simply want some justice. Well, that would mean putting one of the least competent police forces to work, and it resulting in an arrest, sending the perpetrator to one of the least competent judiciaries in the world, and if successful, sent to some of the nastiest prisons in the world. Some of my friends argue that Thailand is second world. I just do not see it. Maybe the upper end of the 3rd world, but that is as far as I would go.

[Naam]

"Be serious, honest with the Thais, and show them exactly how important Thailand is to Saudi Arabia, and how important Saudi Arabia is to Thailand. Show them the benefits that both countries can get from a good relationship,"

Ummm - so the Saudis need rice, and in return Thailand gets what exactly ? Saudis don't usually hand out cash without some other "interesting" conditions attached.

you Sir, seem to have no idea what's this all about. you think the Saudis depend on Thailand for its rice imports? Thailand lost billions and billions of hard currency transfers because Thai labourers/craftsmen are banned since the "blue diamond affair" in 1989.

[Debothai]

My opinion is that Thailand has had an unstable political situation for some years now and to solve this type of problem political stability is a must. Otherwise, the relations can never be restored. The impact to the economy of Thailand by not having relations with KSA must be assessed. This issue must be a policy of the governement and it must be handled by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Additionally, if such relations are restored it may benefit the situation in South Thailand, where tensions are high.

Personally I believe that it is well and good that there are no realtions with KSA, nobody should need the Saudis, however I leave this to the Thai Govenment to decide.

[LucidLucifer]

What you don't seem to realise is that no diplomat would ever state such a realisation in public.

What you don't seem to know is the Saudi diplomat hasn't exactly held back in his previous critisism of the Thai police.

My comment was made tongue-in-cheek, sorry if you missed that.....but maybe it's my retardation (or yours)....

Edited June 14, 2012 by LucidLucifer

[Baerboxer]

My opinion is that Thailand has had an unstable political situation for some years now and to solve this type of problem political stability is a must. Otherwise, the relations can never be restored. The impact to the economy of Thailand by not having relations with KSA must be assessed. This issue must be a policy of the governement and it must be handled by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Additionally, if such relations are restored it may benefit the situation in South Thailand, where tensions are high.

Personally I believe that it is well and good that there are no realtions with KSA, nobody should need the Saudis, however I leave this to the Thai Govenment to decide.

Thailand needs an efficient effective honest police force, coupled with an independent judiciary which enforces law impartially. Then crimes like these and others will get investigated properly and hopefully solved.

Or do you think that you shouldn't worry about crimes committed against foreign natonals unless they come from a country that you think is ok?

You are entitled to your opinions - I'm sure the Saudi's don't neeed you either. Have you ever been there?

[hansgruber]

These cases will be solved eventually once the guilty parties have passed away. No sooner due to face.

Once they have, the government at that time will fix relations, smoke a shisha and under the table contract kickbacks will make someone very rich seeing 200,000 personnel used to work out there.

[EyesWideOpen]

The solution is so simple it defies belief.........Just give back the blue diamond.......

[cloudhopper]

These cases will be solved eventually once the guilty parties have passed away. No sooner due to face.

Once they have, the government at that time will fix relations, smoke a shisha and under the table contract kickbacks will make someone very rich seeing 200,000 personnel used to work out there.

I don't think that solution will ever be possible.

The solution is so simple it defies belief.........Just give back the blue diamond.......

Yes it is and yes it does, sadly.

[LomSak27]

It's just sad

over 200,000 thais were employed in the kingdom sending back more than a billion USD per year and that in the 1980's. All gone like smoke.

[EyesWideOpen]

If the past is any indicator, Saudi nationals who make noise about the blue diamond tend to die. So I noticed he is keeping pretty quiet about it by only making oblique references to cases that needed to be solved...... :-)

Also this headline is odd. The only ruing should be on the part of the Thailand, since Thai people are the ones losing the billion dollars a year in lost work. The Saudis could care less, just hire some one else, and have a good laugh about corruption in Thailand........

Edited June 14, 2012 by EyesWideOpen

[gand]

It is my understanding that the Saudis were abusing the Thais, so the Thais are better off not working there.

[rubl]

If the past is any indicator, Saudi nationals who make noise about the blue diamond tend to die. So I noticed he is keeping pretty quiet about it by only making oblique references to cases that needed to be solved...... :-)

Also this headline is odd. The only ruing should be on the part of the Thailand, since Thai people are the ones losing the billion dollars a year in lost work. The Saudis could care less, just hire some one else, and have a good laugh about corruption in Thailand........

Personally I'm still waiting and wondering. Here a case of what you don't know may hurt you, the Thai workers who were duped with what some did and a few tried and succesfully did hide from a watching world. Welcome to amazing Thailand