[5][6][7][8][9] Sino-Thai relations date back to as late as the early 15th century, when the Ming treasure voyages of Zheng He stopped in Ayutthaya Thailand.

However, Phibunsongkhram sent the children of his advisor Sang Phathanothai to live in China as a goodwill gesture and for informal backdoor diplomacy.

The book The Dragon's Pearl by Phathanothai's daughter Sirin recounts her experience in growing up during the Cultural Revolution in China.

In Cambodia, under Sihanouk's government, the revolutionary Pol Pot (Saloth Sar) secretly formed an infamous Khmer Rouge which will later become the dictator of his four-year reign of terror of what will be known as Year Zero from 1975 to 1979.

[citation needed] In June 1963, Thai King Bhumibol and his wife, Sirikit, visited Taipei in the Republic of China (ROC).

In 1969, Minister of National Defense Chiang Ching-kuo visited Bangkok as a special envoy of the government of the Republic of China to meet with Thai King.

[11] Until 1975, relations were of mutual suspicion, as the PRC supported left-leaning factions within the Thai political circle, and Thailand was wary of Chinese involvement with Cambodian and Laotian conflicts during the civil war for the communist movements of the Khmer Rouge and Pathet Lao.

[1] Relations developed positively in 1978, when China continued to back Thailand during Cambodia's internal conflict in which Marxist forces from Vietnam ousted the Maoist Khmer Rouge from power in early 1979 and threatened the security of Southeast Asia.

[12] The Charoen Pokphand (CP Group), a prominent Thai conglomerate founded by the Thai-Chinese Chearavanont family, has been the single largest foreign investor in China.

[13] In 1994, Taiwanese leader Lee Teng-hui made a private visit to Thailand and met with Thai King to discuss projects on economic co-operation.

[16] In 2024, Thailand and China signed a visa-waiver program that lifted the visa requirement for citizens of both nations, effective since March 1, 2024.

[17] During Thai PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra's visit to Beijing, concerns arose over the potential deportation of 48 Uyghur detainees in Thailand, despite warnings of abuse if sent back to China.

The a network of overseas Chinese businesses operating in the markets of Southeast Asia shares family and cultural ties.

[21][12] China's exports to Thailand computer components, electrical motors, consumer electronics, machinery, metal products, chemicals, and clothing.

[25]: 167 Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha ordered 49 Chinese VT-4 main battle tanks and 3 submarines, which cost more than US$1 billion.

[10]: 63 China built the Sirindhorn Chinese Language and Culture Center at Mae Fah Luang University in Thailand as a gift.