The sixth Round of Sri Lanka-Thailand Free Trade Agreement (SLTFTA) Negotiations was held recently in Bangkok, Thailand. The negotiations were co-chaired by Department of Trade Negotiations Director General and the Chief Negotiator of Thailand, Auramon Supthaweethum and the Chief Negotiator of Sri Lanka K. J. Weerasinghe.
The delegation of Sri Lanka comprised of officials from the Embassy and Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka in Thailand, Presidential Secretariat, Foreign Affairs Ministry, Finance Ministry, Industries Ministry, Commerce Department, Trade and Investment Policies Department, Attorney General’s Department, Sri Lanka Customs, Board of Investment of Sri Lanka and the Sri Lanka Standards Institution.
The delegation of Thailand consisted of officials from the Foreign Affairs Ministry, Trade Negotiations Department, Foreign Trade Department, Thai Customs Department, Agricultural Economics Office, Industrial Economics Office, Board of Investment Office and Council of State Office.
Trade Negotiations Department Director General and the Chief Negotiator of Thailand Auramon Supthaweethum welcomed the Sri Lankan delegation to the sixth round of SLTFTA Negotiations and said that both countries have agreed to conclude the SLTFTA Negotiations by the end of 2023 with the aim of signing on February 3, 2024 to coincide with the Independence day celebrations of Sri Lanka.
The Chief Negotiator of Sri Lanka K. J. Weerasinghe expressed his appreciation to Thailand for hosting the sixth Round of SLTFTA Negotiations. He also expressed his gratitude in agreeing to conclude the SLTFTA Negotiations by the end of 2023 with the aim of signing on February 3, 2024. He highlighted the importance of Thai investments to Sri Lanka and requested the Thai side to consider the concept paper submitted by the Sri Lanka side on the establishment of a special investment zone exclusively for Thai investors.
Ambassador of Sri Lanka and Permanent Representative to the UNESCAP, C. A. Chaminda I. Colonne expressed appreciation to the Trade Negotiations Department of Thailand, for the excellent arrangements made for the sixth round of SLTFTA Negotiations. She stated that the vision of the Government of Sri Lanka is to integrate into the global economy, in this context, to expand economic and trade relations to South Asia and then to the East and to join Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and highlighted that being placed in strategic locations, Thailand serves as a gateway for Sri Lanka to the ASEAN region and Sri Lanka as a gateway to large markets of South Asia, Middle East and Africa.
During the sixth Round of SLTFTA Negotiations, meetings of seven working groups were held, namely, trade in goods, trade in services, rules of origin, technical barriers to trade, trade remedies, investment and legal and institutional issues and carried out successful discussions.
