CGTN reporter Su Yuting sat down with the Prime Minister of Thailand, General Prayut Chan-o-cha, at the event. The prime minister said he is very impressed by President Xi's keynote speech, adding that as the rotating chair of ASEAN, Thailand is a big supporter of the Belt and Road Initiative.

SU YUTING CGTN REPORTER Q1: "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?"

PRAYUT CHAN-O-CHA PRIME MINISTER OF THAILAND "I am extremely impressed by the Belt and Road Initiative since it was initiated by president Xi Jinping 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 quality, justice, equality, and upholding a multilateral worldview. Most importantly, it has to be environmentally friendly, harnessing 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 CGTN REPORTER Q2: "As you said President Xi Jinping has emphasized the high quality infrastructure under the BRI, could you please give us the specific illustrations as examples of the cooperation between China and Thailand?"

PRAYUT CHAN-O-CHA PRIME MINISTER OF THAILAND "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 Thailand-China-Laos 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 CGTN REPORTER Q3: "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?"

PRAYUT CHAN-O-CHA PRIME MINISTER OF THAILAND "The important thing is that once the BRI is complete, it will allow a 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 CGTN REPORTER Q4: "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?"

PRAYUT CHAN-O-CHA PRIME MINISTER OF THAILAND "With regard to China-Thailand 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 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."