Today, CPG led by its director, Henning Glaser, was pleased to welcome Felix Wagenfeld, Director of the Hanoi Regional Office of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst), for a pleasant exchange. The visit was prompted in particular by the fact that, since January of this year, Thailand has also fallen within the remit of the Hanoi Regional Office, which is already responsible for Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam.

Against this background, the meeting focused above all on getting to know one another on both a personal and institutional level, presenting the work of CPG, and engaging in an initial exchange on current developments and possible avenues for cooperation in German-Thai higher education and academic cooperation.

In addition to the CPG core team, the meeting was also attended by H.E. Dr. Warawit Kanithasen, CPG Senior Research Fellow and former Ambassador of Thailand, as well as Issaraporn Kittiwisit and Prakaikaew Thongtawepol of the DAAD Information Centre Bangkok, whom we would also like to thank warmly for their kind coordination of the meeting.

The visit also provided a welcome opportunity to reconnect with the longstanding relationship between CPG and the DAAD, which dates back to CPG’s establishment in 2009 and was shaped for some fifteen years by the support CPG received through the DAAD’s “Centres of Excellence in Research and Teaching” program, funded by the German Federal Foreign Office.

With the 165th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Thailand and Germany in 2027 approaching, we look forward to continuing the dialogue, exploring new opportunities for cooperation, and thereby continuing to contribute to the longstanding and multifaceted academic ties between the two countries.