On March 12, 2024, Ambassador Tanee Sangrat hosted a dinner reception for the Sister Cities International (SCI) at the Residence of the Ambassador of Thailand. The reception was attended by Board Members and members of SCI, and distinguished guests, including the Honorable Erika Moritsugu, Deputy Assistant to the President and Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Senior Liaison, as well as representatives from the U.S. Department of State and the Government of the District of Columbia.

The Ambassador emphasized on the importance of sister city partnership as a framework that provides opportunity to bring the peoples of the two cities closer together to foster more understanding of a foreign community, as well as collaborate for tangible benefits of both cities and peoples.

Thailand and the U.S. currently share 8 pairs of sister cities. The most recent one was established in November 2023 between Chiang Mai, and Austin, Texas. The first pair of Thai-U.S. sister cities are Bangkok and Washington, D.C., of which the affiliation was established in 1962, when both became the other’s first sister city. The cities later signed reaffirmation agreements in 2002 and 2012, marking the 40th and 50th anniversary, respectively.

Another remarkable pair are Samut Songkhram and Mt. Airy, North Carolina. The partnership was established in 2019 and is a testament of the bond between Thai and American peoples, building on the legacy of Eng and Chang Bunker, the Siamese Twins, who arrived in the U.S. in 1829 and settled in Mt. Airy in 1839. They were one of the first contacts between Thailand and the U.S.