[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 39, Number 24 (Monday, June 16, 2003)]
[Pages 749-751]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Joint Statement Between the United States of America and the Kingdom of 
Thailand

June 11, 2003

    President George W. Bush and Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra met 
on June 10, 2003 to reaffirm the strength and importance of the alliance 
between the United States and the Kingdom of Thailand, built upon 170 
years of close and warm relationship between both the two nations. In 
recognition of that

[[Page 750]]

long history of cooperation, the President informed the Prime Minister 
that the United States is actively considering Thailand's designation as 
a Major Non NATO Ally (MNNA).
    The two leaders discussed developments in Iraq and reaffirmed their 
shared commitment to help build a stable, prosperous, and democratic 
Iraq. President Bush welcomed Thailand's offer to deploy a military 
engineering battalion and medical teams to Iraq, and expressed 
appreciation for the humanitarian assistance that Thailand has already 
extended to the Iraqi people. The President further welcomed Thailand's 
successful deployment of an engineering battalion working with the 
Coalition in Afghanistan, noting that such cooperation highlights the 
continued vitality of the U.S.-Thai alliance.
    Both leaders agreed that a lasting peace in the Middle East is of 
vital interest to the international community. In this regard, Prime 
Minister Thaksin expressed his appreciation for the personal involvement 
by President Bush to secure a comprehensive road map for sustainable 
peace and security in the region.
    President Bush and Prime Minister Thaksin expressed concern about 
the situation on the Korean Peninsula. They reaffirmed their commitment 
to work with other states in Asia to achieve the complete, verifiable, 
and irreversible elimination of North Korea's nuclear weapons program, 
as is necessary for stability, peace, and security in the region. The 
President and the Prime Minister expressed concern for the people of 
North Korea and agreed on the importance of humanitarian food assistance 
and efforts to ensure that it gets to those who need it.
    President Bush and Prime Minister Thaksin expressed deep concern 
over recent developments in Burma, in particular the violence that 
occurred on May 30, 2003. The two leaders agreed on the need for the 
immediate release of Aung San Suu Kyi and other National League for 
Democracy (NLD) members. Prime Minister Thaksin affirmed the Thai 
Government's readiness to do whatever possible to facilitate Burmese 
national reconciliation and the return to democracy. Noting that a 
democratic and prosperous Burma is important to the stability and 
prosperity of Southeast Asia, President Bush and Prime Minister Thaksin 
called for an immediate substantive political dialogue between Rangoon 
and all domestic political elements, consistent with the regime's stated 
commitment to a peaceful transition to democracy.
    The two leaders emphasized their continued support for a peaceful 
solution to the conflict in Aceh and expressed hope that the parties 
would return to a negotiating process that seeks a political settlement 
which addresses the grievances of the people of Aceh, while respecting 
the territorial integrity of Indonesia.
    The President commended Thailand's strong leadership in responding 
to the challenge of terrorism in Southeast Asia and its commitment to 
the international community to fight against all forms of terror. The 
President also expressed appreciation for the close U.S.-Thai 
partnership on counterterrorism. President Bush and Prime Minister 
Thaksin discussed recent developments in the war on terror in Southeast 
Asia, welcoming the enhanced cooperation among ASEAN nations that has 
helped disrupt terror plots and apprehend members of the Jemaah 
Islamiyah (JI) terrorist network. While noting that substantial progress 
has been made in eliminating terrorist threats from the region, the two 
leaders agreed that the war on terror is far from over. The President 
and the Prime Minister agreed on the need to further strengthen 
bilateral and multilateral cooperation to combat terrorism and looked 
forward to the upcoming APEC Leaders' Meeting in Bangkok as an important 
opportunity to advance important counterterrorism objectives. The 
President praised Thailand for joining the Container Security Initiative 
(CSI), designed to enhance the protection of shipping against 
exploitation by terrorists, and welcomed the plan for Minister of 
Foreign Affairs Surakiart Sathirathai and Secretary of Homeland Security 
Tom Ridge to sign the Declaration of Principles in Washington.
    The two leaders recognized the long, successful history of 
cooperation between the United States and Thailand on law enforcement 
and counternarcotics. President Bush appreciated Thailand's leadership 
in hosting

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one of the largest and most successful U.S. Drug Enforcement 
Administration (DEA) operations in the world as well as the U.S.-Thai 
International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA). President Bush recognized 
Prime Minister Thaksin's determination to combat transnational crime in 
all its forms, including drug trafficking and trafficking in persons. 
Regarding recent press allegations that Thai security services carried 
out extrajudicial killings during a counternarcotics campaign in 
Thailand, Prime Minister Thaksin stated unequivocally that the Thai 
Government does not tolerate extrajudicial killings and assured 
President Bush that all allegations regarding killings are being 
investigated thoroughly.
    President Bush and Prime Minister Thaksin celebrated the long U.S.-
Thai partnership on a wide variety of tropical and infectious diseases, 
including HIV/AIDs, and agreed to strengthen that cooperation to combat 
new threats, such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). The 
President commended Thailand's leadership in hosting the ASEAN and China 
Summit on SARS and offered continued U.S. support and assistance. Prime 
Minister Thaksin informed the President about his goals for the Asian 
Cooperative Dialogue (ACD), noting his hope that it would help 
strengthen regional cooperation across a range of fields.
    President Bush and Prime Minister Thaksin celebrated the robust 
economic ties between the United States and Thailand and emphasized a 
desire to expand trade and investment ties even further, as called for 
in the bilateral Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA). The 
leaders expressed interest in moving forward under the auspices of the 
President's Enterprise for ASEAN Initiative (EAI), which sets forth a 
road map to promote investment, growth, and free trade between the 
United States and ASEAN countries. The President and the Prime Minister 
committed to making tangible progress on existing commitments under the 
TIFA, including in the areas of intellectual property rights, 
investment, and customs, as a necessary first step towards a possible 
free trade agreement. Both leaders also committed to work together in 
the World Trade Organization's Doha Development Agenda negotiations, 
emphasizing that progress on agriculture will be key to a successful 
conclusion of the Doha negotiations.
    Both sides recognized that Life Sciences will be one of the leading 
industry sectors in the new century, promising significant human 
benefits and economic growth. In that regard, Thailand welcomed the U.S. 
initiative to establish the Life Sciences Innovation Forum under APEC. 
The Prime Minister expressed hope that such mutual cooperation would 
advance Thailand's efforts to become a world class center for research 
and development in Life Sciences and related health fields.
    The President congratulated Prime Minister Thaksin on his leadership 
of APEC in 2003. The two leaders affirmed their commitment to making 
tangible progress in APEC on both trade and investment liberalization 
and counterterrorism objectives. The President looked forward to his 
State visit to Thailand before the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting and 
expressed appreciation for the gracious invitation of His Majesty King 
Bhumibol Adulyadej to visit Thailand. Prime Minister Thaksin expressed 
appreciation for the excellent arrangements being made for the 
forthcoming visit by His Royal Highness Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn to 
Washington. The leaders agreed that these visits would further 
strengthen the already warm friendship between their two governments and 
between the American and Thai peoples.

Note: An original was not available for verification of the content of 
this joint statement.