Bangkok, Oct 09: India and Thailand today signed a landmark Free Trade Agreement and four other accords for enhancing cooperation in agriculture, tourism and science. The FTA will provide a free trade area in goods to begin by year 2010 and in services and investment from 2006.

The other agreements signed were MoU on agricultural cooperation, MoU on tourism cooperation, agreement on visa exemption for diplomatic and official passport holders and programme of cooperation on biotechnology.
The five agreements were signed in the presence of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and his Thai counterpart Thaksin Shinawatara.

Vajpayee, accompanied by a high-powered delegation of officials and businessmen, is the first Indian premier to visit Thailand in a decade.

Bureau Report