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THE RISE AND RISE OF SINO-THAI RELATIONSAfter 40 years of diplomatic ties, and millennia of exchanges, the role of China in the region has increased significantly in recent years, with the countries hoping that cultural affinity will lead to shared prosperityTourism exchanges between the countries are a great opportunity for better understanding; Thais should cast aside ancient prejudices as China continues to evolveThailand and China not only share rivers and mountains but also aspects of culture and ways of life. 2015 marked the 40th anniversary of Thailand-China diplomatic relations, although records of relations date backover a thousand years, when the first groups of Chinese migrants settled in Siam during the Sukhothai Kingdom and Yuan Dynasty through to the Ayutthaya period and Ming Dynasty. The Chinese brought with them the rich culture of China, including arts, literature, dramaturgy, music, architecture and medicine. The Siamese learned how to produce chinaware, which later became important merchandise, and Chinese merchants helped expand the local economy. Both sides benefited from trade and diffusion of knowledge and education. Despite occasional frictions and misunderstandings, relations have predominantly been marked by peace and cooperation. It could be said that Thailand owes some of its prosperity and charm today to the influence of that cultural heritage.HE Ning Fukui, China’s ambassador to Thailand, said that last year about 7 million Chinese travelled to Thailand and over 600,000 Thai tourists visited China. The ambassador was speaking at a forum, “Chinese-Thai Cultural Relations: The Abundance of Cultural Heritage and Future Prosperity”, hosted by Bangkok Bank in November.Despite the Bangkok bombing incident in August, Chinese tourists have not stopped coming to Thailand, fond of the Thai landscape, food, performing arts and hospitality. A movie called Lost in Thailand recently motivated large numbers of Chinese to explore Thailand. Ambassador Ning said that a sequel to Lost in Thailand is being made, and he hopes it will inspire even more Chinese to fall for Thailand. He would also love to see more Thais travel to China, and it could be achieved with encouragement from the public and private sectors.Thongchai Chasawath, director-general of the Department of Consular Affairs, agreed that tourism exchanges between the countries are a great opportunity for better understanding, and suggested that Thais should cast aside ancient prejudices as China continues to evolve.Professor Fu Zhengyou, senior consultant of the Confucius Institute at Chulalongkorn University, pointed out that tourism numbers do not matter if people are not trying to understand each other. For example, many Chinese perceive Thais as being “slow” and “laid-back” and consider themselves “hard-working”, he said. Considering the context of the two countries,Elite+ 63