It was in the afternoon of Feb 22 that I met Virachai Plasai, the Thai ambassador to the United States, along with his five staffers for a meeting at the Thai embassy's main conference room in Washington at 1024 Wisconsin Avenue NW. I had no idea that he was suffering from Myelodysplastic syndrome, a form of bone-marrow cancer. His face was a bit pale, but he was focused and attentive.
The ambassador said that the 70-minute meeting would be an open discussion about Thailand's role as Asean chair and its ties with the United States.
"Our young diplomats need to be able to reach out and keep up with the inner circle in Washington to ensure that there are no misconceptions about our country," he said.
Kavi Chongkittavorn is a veteran journalist on regional affairs.
During the discussion, all in attendance agreed that there needs to be more effort by Thai officials to ensure that the movers and shakers in Washington are well-updated about the real situation in Thailand, as several articles written by American analysts about the kingdom -- including several pieces about Thai's role as Asean's chair, the March 24 election, and the coronation of His Majesty the King on May 4-6 -- did not reflect the actual situation on the ground.
When I saw him at a meeting last May, the ambassador did not speak much and urged his staff to ask questions. He seemed to be in an excellent condition -- although he occasionally coughed -- and his spirits were high. He talked about how he plans to further deepen ties with lawmakers on Capital Hill and other bigwigs in the world's political capital.
After the meeting, he saw me off at the embassy's gate.
"Don't worry, I'll get better soon," he said. "The doctors at Johns Hopkins [Hospital] are really good."
I told him that I still have questions that I wanted to ask about his handling of the Pra Viharn -- or Preah Vihear in Khmer -- case at the International Court of Justice in The Hague.
"No problem," he said. "Call me anytime."
Before he came to Washington, Virachai was one of the movers and shakers on the United Nations' circuit in New York. During his two-year stint in New York, as a multilateralist, Virachai led Thailand's bid for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council in 2016, and subsequently as the chair of the Group of 77 in the same year.
Both efforts expanded Thailand's international profile within the UN system, and improved its standing among developing countries.
It was in New York where Virachai incorporated his musical talents as part of his personal style of diplomacy.
He capitalised on his love of music to expand his network and break the tedium of consecutive meetings by performing with his staff in a rock band called "Thaiphoon".
One of the band's most memorable performance happened when the US envoy to the United Nations, Samantha Brown, got up to the stage and sang Eye of the Tiger with Virachai as the lead guitarist.
Virachai also occasionally played drums, and his performances often became the talk of the town. Along with his friends, he kick-started the so-called "music diplomacy" in the New York.
Those who knew Virachai called him Pi Sap for obvious reasons.
In the Thai language, Sap literally means "pain in the neck", as to many people, that was exactly what Virachai was.
Back in May 2008, Virachai was abruptly transferred from his active post at the Department of Treaty and Legal Affairs during the Samak Sundaravej government, when his integrity and ideals clashed with the instructions issued by former foreign minister Noppadon Pattama.
Among the Thai people, Virachai was the country's public face when Thailand took Cambodia head on at the International Court of Justice over the Preah Vihear temple dispute in 2011-2013. As a law graduate of the the University of Paris (Pantheon-Sorbonne), his French was impeccable. Like Thanat Khoman, the former Thai foreign minister and founder of Asean, he often alternated between English and French.
Virachai was known for his expertise on international law, treaty negotiations, and international litigation. In addition to being a key negotiator in temple dispute case, he also acted as Thailand's legal counsel and arbitrator for several disputes at the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
He was also appointed as Thailand's chief negotiator with the European Union, after the bloc "yellow-carded" the country over issues relating to illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) in 2015.
Under Virachai's watch, Thailand made substantial progress to deal with the matter, which resulted Thailand's removal from the EU's list of "warned countries" in January.
The American charge d'affaires Peter Haymond wrote that Virachai was a friend of the US as "he worked tirelessly to strengthen partnerships between our two countries".
Mr Haymond further noted that as an UN envoy, "he advanced shared values of peace and stability, representing the people of the Kingdom of Thailand, as a leader of Asean, the Indo-Pacific and around the world".
The spokeswoman of Thailand's Foreign Affairs Ministry Busadee Santipitaks aptly described him as a world-class diplomat, a skilful, intelligent, well-rounded and well-respected negotiator -- not only within Thailand but also abroad.
To his colleagues at the Foreign Ministry, he was seen as an outstanding diplomat, a sharp scholar who was very witty and friendly.
She added that he will always be remembered for serving his country in times of dire need and for protecting Thailand's national interests to the best of his ability.
"His passing [on Saturday] is a great loss for Thailand and the world," she said.
Virachai firmly believed that Thailand should assume the chairmanship of the G77. According to a colleague who worked with Virachai for several years, while he led Thailand's bid to assume a greater role in the G77 and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), Virachai said that Thailand "must work even harder as we only have six months left before the UNSC election".
"Under him, everyone praised our creative campaign and numerous contributions to multilateral cooperation, and it was during his term that our mission's performance peaked," the colleague said.
"He earned the respect and recognition from everyone -- our present diplomatic standing really is his legacy."
Many initiatives proposed by Thailand at the UN were masterminded by Virachai, who used an effective combination of his personal charm, wisdom, diplomatic skills as well as his extraordinary ability to juggle many tasks at once to best effect.
Despite his ailing health, he refused to take it easy and continued to work until his very last breath to achieve his goals of improving Thailand's international profile.
Indeed, with Virachai's passing, Thailand has lost its true diplomat extraordinaire.