6. National Policies Upholding Cross-border Trade
Cross-border trade between Thailand and CLM had been periodically affected by political problems during the Cold War era (TDRI 1997). After the end of the Cold War, Thailand proclaimed a policy of turning “Indochina battlefields into a marketplace” in order to foster closer economic interdependence since1988 (Chandoevwit et al. 2005). The Royal Thai Government persistently reaffirms policies to support regional cooperation particularly on international trade at different levels as follows (Royal Thai Government Statement 2009):