At an international forum, Pichai called on Supachai to accelerate the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations between Thailand and the European Union (EU) to finalize the deal and produce tangible outcomes. This follows the FTAs between Thailand and EFTA and Thailand and Bhutan, signed in early 2025 during Prime Minister Paethongtarn's tenure and approved by parliament. He pointed out that Thai exports are losing to Vietnam because Vietnam has more FTAs.
On 20 June 2026, Mr. Pichai Naripthaphan, former Minister of Commerce and former Minister of Energy, spoke at the INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF JURISTS & WRITERS FOR WORLD PEACE held at the Ambassador Hotel on Sukhumvit Road. He said he used to be a newspaper writer and was called in to adjust his views twelve times for criticizing the then-government's economic policies. He explained that Thailand's long-term low economic growth, earning the label “the sick man of Asia,” was due to a prolonged lack of foreign trade negotiations caused by internal political problems. This led to reduced trade and investment, with average economic growth at only 1.9% annually and exports growing only 2% per year. Meanwhile, Vietnam's exports surpassed Thailand's as Vietnam now has FTAs with over 60 countries, whereas Thailand had only 18 at that time, recently rising to 24. Therefore, during his time as Minister of Commerce, he prioritized and accelerated trade negotiations because Thailand’s small, open economy heavily depends on foreign trade, investment, and tourism.
Most recently, he expressed gratitude to parliament for approving the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between Thailand and EFTA (Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein), which concluded negotiations on 30 November 2024 and was signed on 23 January 2025 in Davos, Switzerland, during the World Economic Forum (WEF).
Former Prime Minister Paethongtarn witnessed the signing, which was approved by a parliamentary vote of 583. Parliament also approved the FTA between Thailand and Bhutan, signed on 3 April 2025 at the Government House during the BIMSTEC meeting in Bangkok.
Following the signing of the Thailand-EFTA FTA, Thai exports to EFTA countries surged by 78.66% in 2025. Therefore, he urged the government, specifically Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce Ms. Supachai Sutthampan, to expedite the Thailand-EU FTA negotiations. He believes the agreement should have been completed by the end of 2025 since he had set a signing date with Mr. Maroš Šefčovič, EU Commissioner for Trade and lead negotiator for the EU, on 25 December 2025—similar to the EFTA signing at the WEF meeting—but it remains unfinished.
He added that if the Thailand-EU FTA negotiations succeed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister Supachai will have a significant accomplishment, and Thai exports to the EU will increase substantially. This will also attract more foreign investment into Thailand. After the Thailand-EFTA FTA signing, Thailand’s investment promotion applications soared to a record 1.87 trillion baht in 2025, while exports grew by 12.9% that year. He had predicted at the start of 2025 that exports would grow in double digits, though many disbelieved him.
Opposition members, academics, and senior journalists—including Professor Veera Theerapat and Mr. Sutthichai Yoon—accused him of exaggeration, attributing the export surge in the first half of the year to accelerated shipments to avoid Trump-era tariffs. However, after he met USTR Jamieson Greer twice and secured a 19% tariff rate, Thai exports continued to expand, reaching 12.9% growth in 2025. The export momentum persisted, with growth nearing 20% in the first four months of 2026. He hopes Professor Veera Theerapat and Mr. Sutthichai Yoon will understand and acknowledge their earlier misconceptions, which he did not dispute at the time, preferring to let time prove his point.
If the Thailand-EU FTA is finalized, Thailand will increase its FTA partner countries by 27, adding to the existing 24 for a total of 51, narrowing the gap with Vietnam, which has FTAs with over 60 countries. He hopes Thailand can keep pace with Vietnam and avoid falling further behind.
He also expressed satisfaction that the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA), for which Thailand was the host in 2025, was completed after being announced at the WEF earlier that year. This agreement will greatly benefit Thailand. Additionally, he invited countries to invest in Thailand’s data centers, AI, high-tech, and electronics industries, highlighting Thailand's abundant and stable electricity supply. He also encouraged digital nomads to work in Thailand to boost income and develop the country's digital economy, noting that current investments in data centers and AI already exceed one trillion baht, with significant inflows into high-tech and electronics sectors.
During his tenure as advisor to former Prime Minister Seththa Tavisin in 2024, he invited investors from various countries to invest in printed circuit board (PCB) manufacturing, resulting in substantial investment and making Thailand a major global PCB producer. This success is expected to lead to further expansion into other electronics manufacturing businesses.
He concluded that if Thailand maintains its current levels of trade, investment, and exports, the Thai economy has a strong chance of recovery and escaping the “sick man of Asia” label.
