"I have a Chinese surname – Li, (and) I am Li Samak," Thai Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej introduced himself to Chinese journalists at Bangkok's Government House in a recent interview ahead of his official visit to China.
The 73-year-old Thai leader, at the invitation of his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabao, is scheduled to pay his first official visit to China from June 30 to July 3 since he took office in February.
"It was 227 years ago when my ancestors from China settled down in Thailand, (and) I still keep some family rituals of Chinese tradition like presenting offerings before ancestors' tombs," he told Xinhua.
Historical ties between Thailand and China can be traced back to over 600 years ago, while long-term cooperation and exchanges have become even stronger today, said Samak.
Similar to his own family, Samak said, hundreds of thousands of Chinese from the southern part of China had immigrated to Thailand over the past centuries.
Their descendants now bear Thai names, wear like Thais, and some become prominent figures on the country's business and political arenas, he said.
He said Thais probably know more about China than any other country, citing the example of Princess Sirindhorn, who travels to China almost every year and has a good command of the Chinese language and literature.
"With more and more Thais learning Chinese, the language may soon become the most popular to Thai students as second-foreign language other than English. So you see, between Thailand and China, it is not only trade or cultural exchange. There is no other country in the world like Thailand which has seen the two nations of Thai and Chinese are so melted into each other."
He said he told Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao when they last met at the summit of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Laos that the Thai people "sincerely welcome more Chinese civil servants, students and entrepreneurs to visit Thailand to have a better understanding of our country and people."
The Thai leader, while recalling vividly a lot of trips he has made to various places in China, said he was impressed by the great changes and achievements China has made since his first Chinese tour more than 20 years ago when China just began to open itself to the outside world.
