Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim will visit Thailand on Feb 10 following talks with his chief facilitator for peace in the deep South, according to a security source.
In Thailand, Mr Anwar will meet Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon to discuss security cooperation between the two countries, the source said.
After being sworn in as Malaysia’s 10th leader, Mr Anwar visited Indonesia on Jan 8 and 9 on his first overseas trip. He is due to visit Singapore this month, according to Malaysian Foreign Affairs Minister Zambry Abdul Kadir, before coming to Thailand early next month.
Zulkifli bin Zainal Abidin, a former Malaysian general facilitating peace talks between the Thai government and the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN) separatist movement, will visit Thailand ahead of Mr Anwar’s trip.
Mr Zulkifli will discuss a framework with Gen Prawit and Gen Wallop Raksanoh, head of the government’s negotiation team in the deep South, for a new round of peace talks.
Earlier this month, Thailand’s negotiation team met Mr Zulkifli in Kuala Lumpur to prepare for the new talks.