Initial preparations are now being made for the Thai negotiating team to hold peace talks with insurgent groups following the visit by Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha to Kuala Lumpur on Monday for discussions with the Malaysian prime minister, Deputy Defence Minister and army chief Udomdej Sitabutr said on Wednesday.
Gen Udomdej said the Thai team is looking into the matter in detail and laying down steps to be taken when all sides are ready for the talks.
Gen Aksara Kerdpol, the army's chief adviser, is the Thai chief negotiator in charge of the talks.
In response to questions about the five demands previously raised by the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN), Gen Udomdej said they would be re-examined. Some of them were not acceptable.
The BRN's demands are: Accept Malaysia as the mediator of the talks; the unconditional release of prisoners and the revocation of arrest warrants for suspects in security cases; the recognition of the BRN as the Pattani liberation movement; the participation of other Asean members in the talks; and that the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and non-government organisations witness the discussions.
Gen Udomdej said the army had so far followed a policy similar to Prime Minister's Order 66/23 issued in 1980 to combat communism. The order aimed to promote understanding and allow people who became disillusioned with the ideology to defect to the government.
Gen Aksara said he would prefer it if the medai do not raise too many questions about the peace talks at this time, as he wanted to work secretly in the first stage, adding that he would do the best he could.
He said there would be small teams for talks at the local level and several working groups, the main one being the National Security Council (NSC), to coordinate with Malaysia.
Gen Aksara said there would probably be no more than 15 members in his negotiating team. The exact number would be determined when the insurgent groups advise how many would represent them in the talks.
His team would comprise representatives of the NSC, Internal Security Operations Command, Foreign Ministry, Justice Ministry, army headquarters and 4th Army Region, he said.
"At this time we have to wait, to let Malaysia talk to the insurgent groups. We are ready for the talks," he said.
Gen Aksara said he would set up a team of spokesmen to brief the media on the progress of the talks. He wanted his team to work quietly and felt that the matters raised for talks should not be disclosed to the public before an agreement is reached.