In an attempt to make it easier for its citizens to travel to the Schengen Area, Thailand is continuing to push for Schengen visa exemption.
As part of its move to reach a visa-free travel agreement with the Schengen member states, Thailand is planning to ask Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, and Vietnam for their support and, at the same time, hold talks with the EU.
According to The Nation, Thailand’s Secretary General to Prime Minister, Prommin Lertsuridej, said that the country will require Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, and Vietnam to establish an agreement that would permit tourists holding the visa of one of the countries to enter the others without the need to apply for a separate visa.
Once such an agreement between the five countries is reached, Thailand wants to start talks with the EU on visa exemption for its citizens.
While the authorities of Thailand did not explicitly say so, they want to make it easier for EU travellers to travel from one country to another in the region without the need to apply for multiple visas and, thus, push the bloc to permit unrestricted travel for Thais, too.
Thailand has had a clear mission for some time now. Earlier this month, the country said that it wants to negotiate visa-free travel with more Schengen countries.
Thailand’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Parnpree Bahiddha-nukara said that it is very important that citizens of the country get to travel to the Schengen Area without having to undergo the visa procedures.
For this reason, the government wants to start negotiations with the EU on visa-free travel as soon as possible.
Apart from the country wanting to start the negotiations on the matter, the Minister said that Thailand is also ready to discuss mutual visa exemption for a longer period of time, as citizens of Schengen countries are currently permitted to stay in Thailand for a maximum of 30 days without a visa.
However, before beginning the talks on visa exemption with the EU, Thailand wants first to approve a passport empowerment project, The Nationa notes. According to the latter, the Thai passport empowerment project needs to be approved by the country’s Cabinet, and following the approval, talks on visa-free travel to the Schengen Area can commence.
Thailand has already asked Germany to help the country reach a visa-free travel agreement.
Reminding Germany’s President Frank-Walter Steinmeier that Thailand currently permits visa-free entry for citizens of Schengen member states, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said that the rules should be eased for Thais, too.
According to the VisaGuide Passport Index, Thailand’s passport is currently ranked 109th in the world. Thais need a visa to enter 119 countries, including those that are part of the Schengen Area.
