【英语中国】泰国总理：中国对泰国越发重要

Thailand's prime minister said he won't call national elections until early next year at the earliest as the government promotes programs intended to bridge the kind of economic divides that fueled deadly protests earlier this year.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's comments, in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, came after two separate grenade attacks killed one bystander and injured 11 others in Bangkok over the past week. It remains unclear who was responsible. Although the incidents were small compared with clashes between authorities and antigovernment protesters that killed nearly 90 people in April and May, they were a reminder that parts of Thailand remain tense.

Antigovernment 'Red Shirt' activists continue to call for an ouster of the current government, which came to power in a 2008 parliamentary vote with the backing of military leaders and much of the country's royalist establishment.

Many Thais believe Mr. Abhisit's government hasn't adequately represented the needs of lower-income citizens, and would prefer to see a return of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, a populist who was deposed in a 2006 coup amid allegations of corruption, which he denied.

Mr. Thaksin, who lives in self-imposed exile overseas to avoid a corruption conviction, remains popular in some areas after backing programs such as low-cost health care.

Many analysts say Mr. Thaksin's allies would win a national election if one were held today. By law, the government must call a new vote by the end of 2011.

But in the interview, Mr. Abhisit said he is 'confident' his party can make inroads in areas where Mr. Thaksin remains popular. To boost its standing, the government is stepping up social programs to boost the fortunes of lower-income Thais, much as Mr. Thaksin did. It is unclear when all of the programs will be fully implemented.

Mr. Abhisit highlighted two new programs his government will pursue: A national savings program that would allow tens of millions of Thais to set up retirement funds with matching grants from the government, and a planned property-tax overhaul that would raise taxes on wealthy Thais who own large banks of land that is left undeveloped.

'We are serious about redistributing wealth,' Mr. Abhisit said.

Mr. Abhisit said he expects China and India to be of growing importance to Thailand's economy in years ahead, helping it diversify its economy away from overreliance on exports to Western markets. China and Thailand planning to jointly development a railway line, which Mr. Abhisit says will help to boost trade between both markets.

'China has provided quite a big market for our growth over the last almost decade now,' he said. 'Clearly there is great potential for expansion.'

China's recent changes in its yuan policy, allowing greater flexibility of its exchange rate, haven't affected Thailand yet, according to Mr. Abhisit. 'There have always been calls for greater flexibility,' he said. 'Since there has been a decision to allow for more flexibility, so far there have not been any major effects on exports.'

泰国总理阿披实(Abhisit Vejjajiva)说，他最早要到明年年初才会召开全国大选。此间泰国政府正在推行一些项目，来弥合那种引发今年早前流血示威活动的经济裂痕。

阿披实特别提到了他的政府将要实施的两个新项目。一个属于一种国民储蓄计划，数千万泰国人将可以据此设立退休基金，由政府提供相应的拨款；另一个项目是计划中的物业税改革，将针对持有大量未开发土地的泰国富人提高税收。

阿披实说，我们对财富再分配的态度是认真的。

阿披实预计，未来几年中国和印度对泰国经济的重要性将越来越高，它们将帮助泰国经济减轻对西方出口市场的过度依赖。中国和泰国正打算联合修建一条铁路线，阿披实说，这将有助于提高两国间的贸易。

他说，在过去接近10年的时间里，中国为我们的增长提供了相当大的一个市场，显然存在很大的扩张潜力。

据阿披实说，中国最近提高人民币汇率灵活性的政策改革还没有影响到泰国。他说，一直以来就存在提高灵活性的呼声；自提高灵活性的决策出台以来，到目前为止，泰国的出口还没有受到任何重大影响。