President Obama is practicing a new brand of foreign relations, appearing to flirt with Thailand’s attractive prime minister on his first stop of his three-day tour of Southeast Asia.

The president and Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra could be seen laughing together and exchanging playful glances through a state dinner at the Government House in Bangkok on Sunday.

He was joined in Thailand by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. He said it is 'no accident' that he planned his first foreign trip to Asia after winning re-election.

Speaking at a news conference on Sunday in Bangkok, Obama emphasized that the US is a 'Pacific nation.'

He said the Asia-Pacific region will be crucial for creating jobs in the US and shaping its security and prosperity.

The president's visit made quite an impression on Thailand, and adoring crowds gathered around him and chanted ‘Obama, Obama’ as he visited the Temple of Reclining Buddha just after arriving in Bangkok.

'Yes! I saw him! And he was waving at us!' said 72-year-old American tourist Elizabeth Simon visiting Thailand with her 74-year-old sister.

They were at the beach in Pattaya two hours away but rushed to Bangkok just to see him. 'I'm so thrilled that he won the election. When we heard he was coming, we decided to get here.'

(Read by CJ Henderson. CJ Henderson is a journalist at the China Daily Website.)

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(Agencies)