Bangkok’s Sukhumvit skyline, 13 July 2024. File photo, not the Phuket negotiations. OPK-Photography / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0. Source image unaltered; display may crop.
Thailand and the European Union have entered their tenth round of free trade negotiations. Fifteen of 24 chapters have already been concluded, but some of the hardest questions—market access, agriculture and intellectual property—remain. For businesses and farmers, the remaining rules may matter as much as lower tariffs.
The talks began in Phuket on September 28 and are scheduled to run through October 6, according to Thailand’s Public Relations Department. Both sides are seeking progress toward a free trade agreement, or FTA: a pact that reduces trade barriers and sets common rules for doing business.
The timing matters. Singapore and Vietnam already have trade agreements with the EU, while the Philippines reached substantial agreement in its negotiations on September 22. That Philippine milestone is not the same as an agreement already signed and in force. Thailand is another part of Europe’s effort to build trade ties across Southeast Asia, one country at a time.
The remaining chapters carry difficult choices
Reporting on the ninth round in Brussels put the number of completed chapters at 15 out of 24. The remaining work covers areas including goods, services and investment, government procurement, digital trade and intellectual property. Closing more chapters does not by itself resolve the political disputes within the agreement.
One contentious issue is UPOV 1991, an international framework for protecting new plant varieties. In plain terms, it concerns the rights granted to breeders who develop protected varieties, and the conditions under which others can use them.
Thai farming groups worry that stronger protections could restrict saving and reusing seeds. The Phuket News reported a September 29 protest by the Assembly of the Poor, which demanded that UPOV 1991 be excluded from the negotiations. Those are the group’s concerns about proposed rules, not proof that such restrictions have already taken effect. The FTA remains under negotiation.
The dispute illustrates a broader point: trade agreements may open markets, but they also determine who bears the cost of changing domestic rules.
Why Thailand matters to Europe
Thailand’s importance extends beyond its domestic market. Its automotive, electronics and food industries connect it to regional and global production networks. An agreement could therefore influence where companies invest, manufacture and organize their Southeast Asian operations, as well as the tariffs they pay.
The negotiations also reach into digital trade, energy, raw materials and sustainable development. For Thailand, wider access to Europe could help diversify exports and investment. For Europe, Thailand offers another connection to Southeast Asia’s manufacturing economy. These are potential benefits, not guaranteed outcomes of an unfinished agreement.
Europe is building a regional network
Rather than waiting for one comprehensive EU–ASEAN agreement, Brussels is pursuing bilateral deals with individual Southeast Asian countries. Thailand shows why that approach still involves difficult choices: agriculture, intellectual property, environmental rules and industrial policy all have domestic constituencies.
The question is therefore not only when an FTA might be signed. It is also how much policy flexibility each side is willing to trade for better market access, and how adjustment costs will be shared at home.
The European Commission’s negotiation documents make clear that the final text will be published after negotiations conclude, before signature and ratification. Until then, the remaining chapters are negotiations over future obligations, not rules businesses and farmers can assume are already settled.
About this article
By Evan Liu. Adapted for AHR from the author’s original article, retaining his analysis and attribution. AHR added source links, clarified the status of the Philippine agreement and replaced the original photographs with a separately licensed file image. Information checked on October 2, 2026.