Saudi Arabia and Thailand reestablish ties, many years after Gem Theft

After a Thai janitor took $20 million worth of precious stones from a Saudi ruler’s home in 1989, relations between the two nations crumbled. As per Riyadh, Thai police messed up the examination while the janitor turned into a priest in 2016.
After over thirty years of frozen relations over the burglary of gems from a Saudi royal residence, Saudi Arabia and Thailand have declared the re-foundation of political relations.
During Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-visit Cha’s to Riyadh on Tuesday, the two countries announced “the full re-foundation of conciliatory ties” in a joint assertion.
“This noteworthy move is the result of long-standing endeavors at different levels to restore common certainty and great ties,” the joint assertion said after a gathering between Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed container Salman on Tuesday.
In the in the interim, Saudi Airlines has expressed that trips to Thailand will continue in May.
In 1989, Thai-conceived janitor Kriangkrai Techamong took $20 million in inestimable gems from the home of a Saudi imperial, starting the “Blue Diamond Affair” between the two nations.
Thailand has attempted a few times to make peace, partially to help its imperative the travel industry economy, yet Saudi Arabia had since a long time ago blamed Thai police for messing up the examination concerning the wrongdoing, claiming that the taken gems were grabbed up by high ranking representatives.
A portion of the jewels were in the long run gotten back to Thai police, however Saudi authorities said the larger part were fakes, and the area of the most important stone — — an uncommon 50-carat blue jewel — — is at this point unclear.
In 1990, Riyadh dispatched a finance manager to explore, yet he disappeared in Bangkok just a brief time after three Saudi envoys were killed in the city.
An arraignment against five people, including a senior Thai cop, blamed for complicity in the Saudi money manager’s homicide was deserted in 2014 attributable to an absence of proof.
Kriangkrai was condemned to five years in jail for jewel robbery, and most of the stones were sold before his catch. In 2016, he turned into a priest.