By Diplomacy Journal Lee Kap-soo

Thai Ambassador to Korea Tanee Sangrat has joined a 1 million-signature relay campaign calling for the construction of a private runway at Cheongju International Airport.

Chungcheongbuk-do province announced on May 7 that Thai Ambassador Tanee Sangrat has become the first foreign ambassador to sign a petition calling for the construction of a dedicated runway for civilian aircraft at Cheongju International Airport.

“The lack of flights is the biggest obstacle to expanding people-to-people exchanges between the two countries,” said Thai Ambassador Tanee Sangrat, adding, ”I strongly support the construction of a private runway at Cheongju Airport, which will be a driving force for expanding exchange and cooperation between the two countries.”

The province and Thailand's Bangkok city and Chiang Mai province signed a letter of intent for friendly exchanges between the two regions in September last year.

The province plans to collect signatures from residents calling for the construction of a private runway at Cheongju Airport by June and deliver the signatures to the government and political circles in July.

The province aims to secure 1 million signatures, centered on four cities and provinces in the Chungcheong region, the main user area of Cheongju Airport.

The province argues that a new private runway is necessary to accommodate passenger traffic, which is growing at an average annual rate of 12.1 percent, and to prepare for future aviation demand.

There is also a need to develop Cheongju Airport as an aviation logistics hub in a saturated market where 99.5 percent of domestic aviation logistics is handled at Incheon International Airport.