BANGKOK, April 3 (TNA) – Thai Prime Minister General
Prayut Chan-ocha has called for an integrated action on the border management
among member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN),
paving the way for the establishment of a joint regional mechanism on the more
concrete border management in the future.
The Thai premier made the call on Wednesday while opening
and delivering a speech at the High Level Regional Conference: Synchronising
Trade and Security Plans in Support of ASEAN 2025, being held at the United
Nations Conference Center in Bangkok during April 3-4, stressing that he
believed the ongoing regional gathering should bring about and sustain the
enhanced and concrete cooperation among ASEAN member countries on their
integrated border management in the future, in which the key economic,
security, operational and law enforcement dimensions are included.
“The development of the borderless ASEAN Community (AC)
has caused some adverse effects, including a steady increase in the
transnational crime through the seamless border areas due partly to the abuse
of more advanced technologies and the expanding cross-border transport
connectivity”, said the Thai premier.
Gen Prayut urged all ASEAN member countries to jointly find
ways to practically prevent and crack down the widely expanding and more
sophisticated transnational crime through their integrated border management,
while also carrying on their plans on promoting and sustaining cross-border
trade, investment and safe public communications that are the major objectives
of the development of the borderless AC.
The Thai prime minister expressed his hope that useful
information, intelligence reports, ideas and opinions in relevant areas would
be shared between ASEAN member countries and the United Nations Office on Drugs
and Crime (UNODC) during the ongoing two-day gathering towards their concrete
cooperation on preventing and suppressing the transnational crime and other
systematic cross-border challenges or threats.
Besides, Gen Prayut hoped for agreed moves on the further
development of border areas to reduce economic and social disparity in the
region.
As Thailand plays the role of the ASEAN Chairmanship in
2019, under the theme of “Advancing Partnership for Sustainability”, Gen
Prayut stated that results from the
ongoing two-day regional conference will be further discussed at other relevant
ASEAN forums. (TNA)
