News Forum - Prayut’s Saudi Arabia trip a ‘breakthrough’ after 30 years of tense relations

[Thaiger]

PM Prayut Chan-o-cha is currently in Saudi Arabia in an effort to restore Thai-Saudi economic and diplomatic relations. Experts say the trip, which is the first government trip between the two countries after 30 years, is a huge breakthrough after three decades of tense relations between the two countries. Relations first turned cold in 1989 after the Blue Diamond Affair when a Thai cleaner working in the Saudi royal palace stole US$20 million worth of jewels from the palace. After the affair, two gunmen shot and killed three Saudi diplomats in Bangkok. There are a number of theories concerning what […]

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[TheDirtyDurian]

Not quite true that Thai workers were prohibited. Highly skilled workers were still allowed, engineers etc, and workers already there were grandfathered in. The ban was on any new laborours. 

[Cabra]

If you have even seen the working conditions of immigrant construction labor (non skilled) in places like the UAE and SA, you would know THA is blessed to have been blocked. 

[Graham]

Wonder which system Uncle Tu will use to re-enter Thailand, Sandbox or Test N Go version whatever ?

Knowing him he won't have to apply to anything as he has been in his own bubble. 555

TIT.

[Oracle]

I'm not sure why the terms "breakthrough" or "tense" are used.  Thailand has an embassy in Saudi and vice versa, Saudi's can travel to Thailand albeit with special permission and there are many Thai spouses living in Saudi, and there are plenty of Thai products/groceries on the shelves in Saudi.  Laborers not so much, but professionals are represented.  It has been rumored for a couple of years now that Saudi wants to normalize relations, which would increase Thai tourism (Nana Plaza) and re-start direct flights.  Maybe the doors haven't been fully open, but open enough to allow trade/indirect travel.  Out of curiosity, for old-timers, whatever happened to the Saudi plane that was abandoned at Don Mueang and sat there for years, due to the affair?