German president applauds democratic progress in Thailand

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier praised the steps taken to strengthen democracy in Thailand under the new civilian government as positive progress during his visit to the country.

"After just a few months in power, you can't expect everything to change. But the signals we have seen so far are very encouraging," Steinmeier said in Bangkok on Thursday.

"This has also earned our trust," he added at a press conference with Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, who took office last August after months of political wrangling plagued the Asian kingdom.

Srettha, a real estate tycoon, said that Thailand and Germany plan to expand their relations into a strategic partnership. The path for this is to be paved during his official visit to Germany in March.

"Thailand is back," said the Thai prime minister, referring to his country's recent transition to a civilian government, the first since the 2014 coup which is not largely governed by the military.

Following the coup, Germany - like other countries - had severely restricted its contacts with Bangkok. Srettha is now convinced that Steinmeier's visit would lead to a "new era" in bilateral relations.

The bilateral trade volume between Germany and Thailand amounted to about €14 billion ($15.2 billion) in 2022.

Steinmeier expressly recognized that the country's Constitutional Court had acquitted the actual winner of last year's election, Pita Limjaroenrat from the Move Forward party, of the charge of violating the electoral law.

The charge had blocked Pita from becoming prime minister even though his party placed first.

"On the one hand, this is a message to the international community. On the other hand, it is also a conciliatory signal internally," Steinmeier noted.

If convicted, Pita would have faced a long prison sentence and a ban on political activity.

Thailand is a popular holiday destination for Germans. According to Srettha, some 700,000 German tourists came last year.