WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump will congregation Thai junta chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha at the White House on October 3 as the pair try to find to improve warming ties and cooperation.
During the visit, which follows an invitation Trump extended during an April phone call, the pair will "talk about ways to make stronger and broaden bilateral relations and enhance cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region," the White House said in a statement.
A coup organized by former Thai army chief Prayut had stressed ties with the US administration, as the military jailed dissidents, banned protests and ramped up prosecutions under the kingdom's draconian lese majeste law, although he met Trump's precursor Barack Obama during a ASEAN-US summit in California last year.
Trump administration has dismissed reports that it has been ignoring India, saying President Trump realises that the country has been a "force for good" in the world and ties with it were important.
"I think that it would be wrong to say that this administration has been ignoring or not focused on India," a senior administration official told reporters ahead of the two-day Modi visit from June 25.
"I think it's a bit unfair. But there have been two very good phone calls between President Trump and Prime Minister that you can point to as showing both countries' interest in the relationship," the White House official argued.
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