The cabinet has approved a new regulation proposed by the Ministry of Commerce to control the export of dual-use goods to meet United Nations Security Council requirements and to protect Thai exports.
Under the new regulation, exporters of the commercial products that could be used to make weapons of mass destruction must seek approval from the ministry before delivering them to overseas buyers, deputy government spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd said on Friday.
Such products include carbon fibre - a raw material used in the manufacture of tennis rackets and golf clubs, and also missiles - and Triethanolamine - which is used to make soap, detergent and lotions, as well as poisonous substances and toxic smoke.
Castor oil and tungsten wire are also subject to control because they can be used to make weapons, including biological agents, Maj Gen Sansern said.
At present, various dual-use items (DUIs) fall under the control of five organisations -- the Defence Industry Department, the Department of Industrial Works, the Department of Medical Sciences, the Office of Atoms for Peace, and the Office of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission.
However, they could not supervise the export of all dual-use goods, as required by the European Union, the deputy government spokesman said.
"The new regulation authorises the Ministry of Commerce to supervise the DUIs that do not directly concern the other agencies, in order to prevent the export of such products to groups or individuals that could threaten security," Maj Gen Sansern said.
He hoped that these tighter controls would help protect Thai exports, because trading partners could not cite insufficient regulation as an excuse to ban Thai products.
There were about 1,700 listed DUIs in Thailand and about 10,000 exporters earned hundreds of billions of baht from shipping them annually, Maj Gen Sansern said.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1540 on the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction requires member states to control the transport of dual-use goods, he said.