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Russia, Thailand to move to using national currencies in trade — expert

Following the Russia-ASEAN summit, the Russian-Thai Business Council's executive director outlined plans for bilateral trade in national currencies, a direct shipping route, and an investment protection agreement, with the next joint commission meeting set for August.

By Tertius News AI Desk 1 outlet · 3 articles Version 1 Coverage Jun 25, 2026 Published Aug 15

Lead

Russia and Thailand intend to move to settlements in national currencies in their bilateral trade, according to Vladimir Kovalyov, Executive Director of the Russian-Thai Business Council, speaking to TASS after the Russia-ASEAN summit. The announcement comes alongside plans for a direct container shipping route and the conclusion of an investment protection agreement, with a key intergovernmental meeting scheduled for August.

Coverage Comparison

All information in this article comes from three TASS English-language reports, each drawing on remarks by Kovalyov following the summit. The reports collectively cover trade, investment, and logistics, presenting a unified picture of the bilateral agenda. While the emphasis differs slightly—one focuses on investment protection, another on trade and payments, and a third on the investment forum—all attribute the statements to Kovalyov and present the developments in a positive light.

Key Claims

Kovalyov said that both sides are interested in using national currencies and simplifying settlement operations. He noted that mechanisms already exist but need adjustment, adding that a political decision is required to proceed at the executive level. He expressed confidence that the issue would be resolved positively and mentioned that Thai colleagues are interested in Russian payment instruments.

On logistics, Kovalyov said that Russia and Thailand have been working to establish a direct container shipping route between Novorossiysk and Bangkok. He described the need to diversify logistics routes to make them "easier, clearer, and more comfortable," and mentioned ongoing discussions on insurance and leasing issues.

Regarding investment protection, Kovalyov said that the meeting of the intergovernmental commission on cooperation between Russia and Thailand is planned for August, with the conclusion of an investment protection agreement on the agenda. He stressed the importance of establishing an infrastructure and legal framework for protecting mutual investments. He also said that the Russian-Thai Business Council has prepared a consolidated business position on the matter, which was voiced by Russian Minister of Economic Development Maxim Reshetnikov, and that the ministry is actively working on the document.

Kovalyov also announced that the second Russian-Thai Investment Forum is scheduled for late October in Bangkok. He said that cooperation in medicine and medical technology was discussed at the Russia-ASEAN forum, with interest on both sides. He noted that last year's forum, held in Phuket, drew over 1,100 in-person participants and that the total estimated value of projects discussed exceeded $3 billion. He added that the Thai Prime Minister mentioned the upcoming forum from the business forum stage, indicating it had generated investment momentum between the two countries. Kovalyov said the forum would be used to review the past year's joint projects and outline new prospects.

How this outlet told it

TASS — English as of Jun 25, 2026, 1:30 PM UTC

Framing: Economic cooperation — Neutral

Facts Included:

Meeting of the joint Russian-Thai commission on bilateral cooperation scheduled for August
Conclusion of an investment protection agreement to be discussed
Establishing infrastructure and legal framework for mutual investment protection
Russian-Thai Business Council prepared a consolidated business position on the issue

Read the source article →

TASS — English as of Jun 25, 2026, 12:30 AM UTC

Framing: Trade and logistics — Positive

Facts Included:

Russia and Thailand intend to shift to settlements in national currencies in bilateral trade
Logistics issues and direct container shipping route between Russia and Thailand
Interest in Russian payment instruments
Need to diversify logistics routes

Read the source article →

TASS — English as of Jun 25, 2026, 11:31 AM UTC

Framing: Investment and cooperation — Positive

Facts Included:

Second Russian-Thai Investment Forum scheduled for late October
Cooperation in medicine and medical technology discussed
Last year's forum drew over 1,100 in-person participants
Total estimated value of projects discussed exceeded $3 billion

Read the source article →

What was claimed, and who backed it

Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status counts the distinct outlets we found asserting it — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.

Claim	Confidence	Status
ClaimThe meeting of the joint Russian-Thai commission on bilateral cooperation is scheduled for August.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Jun 25, 2026, 1:30 PM UTC
ClaimThe conclusion of an investment protection agreement will be discussed at the meeting of the joint Russian-Thai commission on bilateral cooperation.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Jun 25, 2026, 1:30 PM UTC
ClaimIt is crucial to establish an infrastructure and a legal framework for the protection of mutual investments between Russia and Thailand.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Jun 25, 2026, 1:30 PM UTC
ClaimThe Russian-Thai Business Council has prepared a consolidated business position on the issue of mutual investment protection.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Jun 25, 2026, 1:30 PM UTC
ClaimRussia and Thailand intend to shift to settlements in national currencies in bilateral trade.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Jun 25, 2026, 12:30 AM UTC
ClaimRussia and Thailand are working to establish a direct container shipping route between Novorossiysk and Bangkok.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Jun 25, 2026, 12:30 AM UTC
ClaimRussia and Thailand need to diversify logistics routes to make them easier, clearer, and more comfortable.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Jun 25, 2026, 12:30 AM UTC
ClaimThe second Russian-Thai Investment Forum is scheduled to be held in Bangkok in late October.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Jun 25, 2026, 11:31 AM UTC
ClaimCooperation in medicine and medical technology was discussed on the sidelines of the Russia-ASEAN forum.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Jun 25, 2026, 11:31 AM UTC
ClaimLast year's Russian-Thai Investment Forum drew over 1,100 in-person participants, and the total estimated value of the projects discussed exceeded $3 billion.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Jun 25, 2026, 11:31 AM UTC

Transparency & Audit Trail

1 outlet · 3 articles consulted: TASS — English 10 claims extracted Version 1 Written 2026-08-15