Thai Prime Minister Gen. Surayud Chulanont left Monday for two-day official talks with his Malaysian counterpart Abdullah Badawi, with a brief stopover in the troubled southern province of Narathiwat for an audience with Her Majesty the Queen.
Accompanied by key ministers, Gen. Surayud flew from Don Muang military airport for Narathiwat province where he would offer scholarships to students and then have an audience with Queen Sirikit at her palace in the province.
On Monday night, he will leave for Malaysia and ministers of the two neighbouring countries will participate in this year‘s session of an annual consultation, according to Thai government spokesman Yongyuth Mayalarp. The visit is also aimed at strengthening 50-years of diplomatic ties between the two countries.
A memorandum of understanding on education will be signed by the education ministers of the two nations Tuesday to be followed by a dinner party which both prime ministers will attend.
On Wednesday, Gen. Surayud and his ministers will discuss with the Malaysian ministers on the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle cooperation which began in 1993, said Mr. Yongyuth. Other major issues which will be raised at the meeting is the cooperation between Thailand and Malaysia to solve the violence in Thailand‘s deep south through the so-called "3E" programmes.
Malaysia and Thailand have agreed to implement the programmes in education, employment and entrepreneurship to help resolve the conflict in restive southern Thailand provinces.
Malaysia is expected to train about 4,000 people from the southern provinces and is likely to employ Thais to work across the border.
In regard to entrepreneurship, Malaysia would support micro-financing through its Islamic banking facilities.
PM Surayud has sought PM Abdullah‘s cooperation to restore peace in the southern provinces of Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat where more than 2,300 people have died as a result of renewed violence beginning in January 2004. (TNA)
Source: www.bangkokpost.com (21 Agustus 2007)
