Thailand’s Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said there was no plan to invite Chinese police officers to patrol local tourist destinations, seeking to clear the air after comments by the country’s tourism authority about such a program created a furor.
The Southeast Asian country only wants to co-operate with Chinese police on information exchange about criminal networks that may be active in Thailand, which would boost the confidence of Chinese tourists, Srettha told reporters during a trip to San Francisco on Monday. The co-operation would not involve stationing Chinese police personnel in Thailand, he said.
Srettha’s comment came after the governor of Tourism Authority of Thailand told reporters on Sunday that Thailand was in talks with China about a joint patrol program, which sparked an outcry among Thais who expressed concern about sovereignty. The controversy arose due to a miscommunication, he said.
READ: Thailand’s Plan to Deploy Chinese Police Patrol Sparks Outcry
Thailand has been trying to revive its tourism industry, a key driver of economic growth. Chinese tourists used to make up the largest number of foreign arrivals to Thailand before the pandemic.
In September, Srettha’s administration waived visa requirements for Chinese travelers for a five-month period, an exemption that was extended to Indians and Taiwanese travelers this month through May next year.
Chinese arrivals have totaled 2.8 million so far this year, trailing the government’s full-year target of 4 million to 4.4 million, official data show.
