Bangkok: When Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee stands before the joint session of Thai parliament on October 9, he will be the first-ever foreign leader to have addressed the two Houses of the Thai Senate, in a visit that would also see the signing of a landmark Free Trade Agreement (FTA).

Vajpayee's visit is the first official visit in 10 years by an Indian Prime Minister to Thailand after the 1993 visit by P V Narasimha Rao.

The high point of the visit will be the signing of the landmark FTA with Thailand. Other accords to be signed during his 3-day visit are a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on agricultural co-operation and two other agreements on co-operation in tourism and bio-technology.

India and Thailand have tentatively agreed on an 'Early Harvest' Package to slash tariffs to zero on 83 products as part of the bilateral FTA. The list of 83 fruits, vegetables, raw materials and other goods represents about 7.7 per cent of total two-way trade worth one billion USD.

Vajpayee arrives in Bangkok late on October 8 from the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Bali. He begins his official engagements on October 9 by holding talks with Thai leaders including his counterpart Thaksin Shinawatara.

Later in the evening, he is scheduled to address the joint session of the Thai Parliament and at night Thaksin will host a banquet in Vajpayee's honour.

PTI