CGTN reporter Su Yuting sat down for an interview with the Prime Minister of Thailand, General Prayut Chan-o-cha, who is also attending the Second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing. The Thai Prime Minister said he was very impressed by President Xi Jinping's keynote speech, adding that as the rotating chairman of ASEAN, Thailand will actively participate in the building of the BRI. 

Su Yuting: President Xi Jinping has delivered a keynote speech during the opening ceremony of the Second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation. What are the specific points that impressed you the most?

Thai PM: I am extremely impressed by the Belt and Road Initiative, since it was initiated by President Xi in 2013. And I've noticed that it has seen great progress and the participants have greatly increased as well. I was also pleased that the president delivered his very impressive remarks. It was a frank exchange of views between members on how to bring this movement forward, and I was pleased to hear that he emphasizes the development of this initiative on the basis of equality, on the basis of justice, and on the basis of upholding a multilateral worldview. 

What President Xi emphasized that I found extremely important is that the development has had to focus on equality, on mutual benefits and also on the voluntary basis of people, and most importantly, it has to be environmentally friendly, harnessed by the power of renewable energy. There have been real concrete benefits in this system, and that's why I'm very impressed by it. 

Su Yuting: As you said President Xi Jinping has emphasized the high-quality infrastructure under the BRI, could you please give us specific illustrations as examples of the cooperation between China and Thailand? 

Thai PM: Yes, I'm also impressed that the president also considers the differences of each country and differences of developmental context of each country, and the impetus of this project isn't only to link the region together, but to link the world together through different regions. A key part of it also involves Thailand, through the China-Thailand railway which will be a means of linking south China in Yunnan, right away down to South and Southeast Asia. 

And this is a form of physical connectivity under this project. Moreover, this year the important thing for Thailand is that we will be the chair of ASEAN, and we believe that the BRI's aims are in line with our ASEAN chairmanship which is advancing partnership for sustainability. So ASEAN and BRI can be seen as another channel to strengthen our cooperation in the region, and this isn't only between Thailand and China, but also ASEAN and China, and onwards to other regions as well. 

Su Yuting: You once mentioned in a televised speech that Thailand's Eastern Economic Corridor is highly complementary to the Belt and Road Initiative. What positive impact has the Belt and Road Initiative had on the development of your country's Eastern Economic Corridor? 

Thai PM: "The important thing is that once the BRI is complete, it will allow great connectivity into Thailand, and the Eastern Economic Corridor, the EEC, will be a core economic and industrial part of Thailand, so the prosperity will spread across the country and spread across ASEAN. However, the EEC will not only be assisting the ten traditional industries of Thailand but we are also promoting the ten smart industries of Thailand which include artificial intelligence, defense and smart automobiles, and this will be supported by the technology transfer by BRI and once the EEC is complete, it can also be very easily connected to the border areas of Thailand which link easily to four to five neighboring countries, thereby spreading the development to those areas as well.

Su Yuting: It has been five years since the Belt and Road Initiative was initiated. What do you make of its achievements over the past few years, especially in terms of China-Thailand cooperation under the framework of the BRI? 

Thai PM: With regard to Sino-Thai cooperation under the BRI, Thailand is pleased that the China-Thailand Railway Project has made good progress. Once complete, the line will connect with the China-Laos railway, linking China, Laos and Thailand and other ASEAN member states. The project is therefore very important as it will reduce the cost of logistics and expand trade, investment and tourism between ASEAN and China. We also have a five-year national strategy which we review every five years, and we ensure that's in line with the BRI's requirements. We have to push forward this plan to bring concrete benefits to our people as soon as possible.