Thai Ambassador: Zangazur corridor is crucial alternative route between Asia and Europe - INTERVIEW

The term of office of Apirat Sugondhabhirom, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Thailand to Azerbaijan, Türkiye, Turkmenistan, Georgia, and North Macedonia, residing in Ankara, is ending. During his diplomatic career, Sugondhabhirom, who was active in discussing the opening of the Azerbaijani Embassy in Thailand, the simplification of visa issues, the organization of direct flights between the two countries, and other issues, has returned from a trip to Azerbaijan.

The non-resident ambassador shared his latest impressions of Azerbaijan in an interview with Report.

- Mr. Ambassador, what was the purpose of your recent visit to Baku?

- During 11-12 of September, 2025, I went to Azerbaijan to say goodbye to our Azerbaijani friends, as I will finish my term of service as the Thai Ambassador to Azerbaijan on 30 September. I have the chance to call on H.E. Deputy Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan, Mr. Elnur Mammadov. We talked about Thailand-Azerbaijan cooperation, including possible flight connections that AZAL, the Azerbaijani National Flag Carrier, has shown interest in having direct flights between Baku and Bangkok and Phuket soon. We also talked about cooperation in agriculture and food production, and the policy cooperation between the Thai and Azerbaijani foreign ministries, including the possible regular meetings between our foreign ministries.

We also talked about possible cooperation in the defense industry and landmine clearance. He told me about the latest situation between Azerbaijan and Armenia, and developments on Azerbaijan-Armenian cooperation about the Zangazur corridor.

I also met the chairman of the Azerbaijan-Thailand Interparliamentary Friendship group, Mr. Goydeniz Kahramanov. We discussed cooperation between our two parliaments. As Mr. Kahramanov is also president of the Azerbaijan Tourism Association, with 200 traveling agencies of Azerbaijan in his organization, we discussed tourism cooperation and the electronic visa system of Thailand as well.

- There have been a number of advances in the development of relations between the two countries over the past four years. What is your role as an ambassador in these achievements?

- I have been the Ambassador of Thailand to Azerbaijan (with residence in Ankara) for almost 4 years. I went to Baku many times and I also visited the Nakhchivan region once. I am happy that during my term as the ambassador of Thailand to Azerbaijan, there have been many positive developments in the relationship between our countries. In particular, we have to thank the Azerbaijani government for deciding to open the Azerbaijani embassy in Bangkok for the first time last year. The first ambassador of Azerbaijan in Thailand, Ambassador Elchin Bashirov, has been very active.

The official opening ceremony of your embassy in Bangkok, I think, will be held later this year. As far as I know, the deputy foreign minister of Azerbaijan will go to Thailand for this official ceremony. That time I will already be in Thailand, and I hope Ambassador Bashirov will invite me to attend.

- Does Thailand also want to open its embassy in Azerbaijan?

- At this time, I do not have any information yet. There have been discussions about such a possibility, but until now, there has not yet been a decision.

- You noted that in Baku, you had talks about possible cooperation in the defense industry and landmines...

- Yes. The Azerbaijani side asked Thailand for cooperation assistance in landmine clearance, because we have experience in this field. Already, two delegations from Azerbaijan have been to Bangkok and visited the Thailand Mine Action Center (TMAC). Discussion still continues between our countries on this matter.

- In recent years, we have witnessed the intensive development of relations between the Azerbaijani and Thai parliaments. In any case, your role as an ambassador in this matter cannot be ignored...

- I have indeed helped to facilitate the exchanges of visits between our parliamentarians. The Royal Thai Embassy organized a visit to Thailand for the members of the working group on the inter-parliamentary friendship between Azerbaijan and Thailand in April last year. We arranged for them a meeting with the then vice foreign minister of Thailand, cementing the interparliamentary relations.

The President of the Thai Parliament (the National Assembly), Wan Muhamad Noor Matha, himself came to visit Baku during my tenure. It was during one of the Asian Parliamentary Assembly (APA) meetings, and President Matha had several meetings there. After that, there was also the visit to Baku of the Vice President of the Thai House of Representatives. He also met with Madam Sahiba Gafarova, the Speaker of the Azerbaijani Parliament, and Vice Speaker Mr. Rafael Huseynov.

- What is the current state of economic and trade relations between Thailand and Azerbaijan? That is, has there been any progress in this area?

- We try to promote our bilateral economic cooperation. H.E. President Ilham Aliyev himself told me that Azerbaijan was interested to learn from Thailand in agriculture and food production, and I have reported to Thailand to see what we can do to help our Azerbaijani friends. H.E. President would like to diversify the economy of Azerbaijan from oil/natural gas to other sectors, including food production and agriculture. The Azerbaijani side looks at Thailand's strong points in these areas.

- What experiences do you think Thailand wants to learn from Azerbaijan?

- The Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs is interested in learning about the harmonious coexistence of different peoples in Azerbaijan. A delegation from my Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand (Department of Policy and Planning), led by an ambassador, visited Baku in September last year, to learn about Azerbaijan. In particular, we are interested in your experience with respect for diversity, the multicultural harmony you have in your society. Here you have Muslims, you also have Jewish people, and also Christians living together. You even have the fire temple- the Ateshgah. The Ateshgah temple fascinates us. By the way, I had never been to Ateshgah before, but this time I finally went to visit it.

- You said that you also had discussions regarding the Zangazur corridor. What benefits do you think the opening of this corridor could bring to the Asian continent?

- I think connectivity is a very important issue now. The Zangazur corridor will be a very important part, of course, when it is functional, as per President Donald Trump's initiative. Because it can be an important part of the Asia-Europe connection. The most important alternative route for land connection between the two continents, in my opinion, is the Zangazur corridor.

- Simplifying the visa process to Thailand and opening direct flights were also on the agenda. How were these issues resolved during your mission?

- There is a strong interest in opening direct flights between the two countries: Baku- Bangkok-Phuket. I hope it will be open next year by AZAL. In Thailand, one of the strong points is medical tourism. We also discussed cooperation in tourism and informed each other about the visa systems. We have made it easier for Thai tourists to go to Azerbaijan and Azerbaijani tourists to go to Thailand. Cooperation between our tourism sectors can be quite a big business, and our two sides are already discussing.

During my time as Ambassador, the Thai government has made it easier for Azerbaijani friends to visit our country through our new electronic visa system. Previously, you had to apply for a visa directly at the Thai Embassy in Ankara, which was not easy. We launched our electronic visa system about 9-10 months ago. You can now apply for an electronic visa online if you are already in Baku. After this process became easier, I saw an increase in the number of Azerbaijani tourists who wanted to visit Thailand.

- What role can Thailand play in Azerbaijan's policy towards Asian countries?

- I congratulate Azerbaijan on hosting the Non-Aligned Movement Summit, of which Thailand is a member. The team of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand came to this Summit in Baku. The success of COP29 held in Baku last year should also be appreciated. The Minister of Environment of Thailand participated in COP29 as the head of the country's delegation.

Our countries are also joint members of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA), of which Azerbaijan is the current chairman. We look forward to cooperation with Azerbaijan within the framework of CICA.

- What role can Azerbaijan's representation in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) play in Asia?

- Azerbaijan wants to join the SCO and I wish you well [in this endeavor]. The SCO is an important organization. But Thailand has not yet become a member of this organization.

It would be great if Azerbaijan played a more active role in Asia.

- During your time as ambassador, were any agreements on cooperation in the fields of culture, education, and sports signed, or were negotiations held in this area?

- I have seen quite an interest from the Azerbaijan side in sports and culture cooperation. There might be a possibility of signing the agreement about cooperation in cultural relationships between our two countries. We are still considering it. Also, in sports and in literature, there can be cooperation. H.E. the Azerbaijani Vice Speaker, Rafael Huseynov, has already translated poems of one of our prominent poets - Sunthorn Phu - into the Azerbaijani language. He has also introduced me to poems of the Azerbaijani Poet Nizami, to see if it might be possible to translate into the Thai language later.

During my term as Ambassador, there have also been discussions about possible academic and educational cooperation between Thailand and Azerbaijan. I hope more can be done in this area in the future.