Thailand’s prime minister Anutin Charnvirakul surprised guests in Beijing by singing “Tian Mi Mi” (Sweet Honey), a famous love song by the late Taiwanese music icon Teresa Teng, during a lunch hosted by Chinese premier Li Qiang.
The performance took place at the end of the Thai prime minister’s first official visit to China. During the trip, he also visited Shanghai, where he met Chinese president Xi Jinping.
Images from the lunch in Thai media showed Mr Charnvirakul holding a microphone at a long table as Mr Li and other officials watched and applauded, with Thai and Chinese flags displayed in the background.
The performance was the latest example of what many have described as Mr Charnvirakul’s “musical diplomacy”.
Earlier this month, during an appearance with Malaysian prime minister Anwar Ibrahim, the Thai PM played the saxophone while Mr Ibrahim sang “My Way”, the famous song associated with Frank Sinatra.
A clip of the performance went viral, with one commentator quipping that it was an episode of “ASEAN Idol”, referring to the bloc of southeast Asian nations.
During another visit to Hanoi in June, Mr Charnvirakul joined local musicians and played a traditional Vietnamese instrument in front of the country’s prime minister Le Minh Hung.
At the dinner hosted at the Vietnamese government office, musicians performed Thai songs, including “Sabai Sabai” by Bird Thongchai, using traditional Vietnamese instruments. The Thai PM joined them for at least two songs.
Mr Charnvirakul is reported to be proficient with several instruments, including the piano and the Thai flute, and is also a hobbyist pilot.
The Thai prime minister comes from a wealthy construction family but has worked to present himself as a leader with a more relatable image.
The Thai PM also performed a duet of the Thai rock song “Som San” with the teen sensation whose original name is Rattikarn “Praew” Amloy, but is better known as Nene Royal, on 14 July.
Nene gained international fame after her powerful audition on Season 21 of America’s Got Talent, where she performed The Cranberries’ “Zombie” while playing electric guitar.
According to Nation Thailand, following her viral success, the Thai government announced financial support for her continued participation in the competition. They also reportedly discussed plans to involve her as a tourism ambassador to promote Thailand’s image and “soft power” globally.
Earlier this year, Japanese prime minister Sanae Takaichi and South Korean president Lee Jae Myung surprised people after their summit in Japan by ending the meeting with a joint drum performance. The two leaders played along to K-pop hits, including BTS’s “Dynamite” and “Golden” from KPop Demon Hunters.
