Anutin highlighted the vision of "Team Thailand," uniting the power of government, private sector, and politics to drive the country and show the world that Thailand is a nation with food security.
At 10:00 a.m. on 5 Nov 2026 GMT+7, Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, who is also Minister of the Interior, presided over the opening ceremony at the National Defence Studies Institute. He opened the event under the theme "The Role of Government, Private Sector, and Politics in Safeguarding National Security," expressing gratitude to the institute, where he is an alumnus. He shared that he has applied the knowledge gained there in his work, such as connecting network relationships, which have been extremely beneficial. He said this experience is valuable not only personally but also in forming friendships and bonds through the program. He hopes that everyone present has had a similar experience and will carry these good memories forward after graduation. He affirmed that this year is especially valuable for those enrolled, as it is a year when everyone willingly rises early, despite their duties in government service or business. He added that if anyone encounters problems, there are over 300 fellow alumni ready to help find solutions and ensure successful outcomes, as long as actions remain lawful, constitutional, and ethical.
Anutin further stated that his lecture topic was the role of government, private sector, and politics in maintaining national security. Traditionally, national security was associated with military matters, but today it encompasses economy, society, food, public health, environment, technology, and most recently energy. He emphasized that all these issues are important and affect national security. He stressed the need to consider foreign policy carefully to avoid Thailand being disadvantaged in any dimension. Thailand must maintain a proper stance, earn respect, trust, and recognition on the global stage. Currently, all of us engaged in government service — including political officials, civil servants, and security forces — are implementing policies related to national security across all dimensions with dedication, achieving reliable stability. This National Defence Studies class and others include personnel involved in economic security from the Bank of Thailand, Ministry of Finance, and private sector. In social security, there are networks from civil society and the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security.
Regarding energy, numerous stakeholders from both government and private sectors are involved. Concerning food security, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives is also part of this class. Anutin noted that few have studied at the National Defence Studies Institute. Most of them enter as deputy directors, but the Permanent Secretary advanced quickly and enrolled only after becoming the ministry head, which will help build valuable networks, as food security is extremely important.
The Prime Minister also remarked that recent news reported increased temperatures in freezers across European food networks, causing widespread food spoilage. He said reading this made him want to cry out of sympathy and question the cruelty of the world. However, on the other hand, he sees this as an opportunity for Thailand. One of Thailand’s proudest and unquestioned claims when speaking to global audiences is its role as a major food producer. Thailand has a clear policy to be a country that demonstrates food security, compelling the world to take notice. While others sell oil, which is highly valued, he pointed out that oil cannot be consumed for sustenance, but without food, human life cannot be sustained.
Therefore, this is the point where Thailand must strengthen its position as a country that fully produces, processes, and industrializes products such as rice, fruit, vegetables, and meat. Thailand has a complete range. This is the message he wants to leave with the National Defence Studies students.
