An umbrella group of Muslim rebels involved in the southern insurgency called Thursday for a resumption of stalled peace talks, but it was unclear whether the military would recognise them.
Representatives of Mara Patani, which claims to speak for six of the insurgency's leading rebel organisations, said they met Thai officials during exploratory talks in Malaysia this week.
"Our principle is to find a solution through peaceful dialogue," Awang Jabat, the group's chairman, told reporters during a briefing on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur. "We hope we can bring the conflict to an end and promote a lasting peace."
Earlier: Peace talks stall over 'immunity'
He said government and military representatives at this week's dialogue were noncommittal, saying they had to consult with National Council for Peace and Order leaders.
But NCPO spokesman Werachon Sukhondhapatipak, in comments to AFP in Bangkok, appeared to cast doubt on a speedy resumption of peace talks.
"(The peace talks) are an issue for the security agencies. Don't give any importance to brand new organisations," he said.
A range of shadowy groups are fighting in the South for a level of autonomy from Thailand, which is mostly Buddhist. More than 6,400 people have been killed, the majority of them civilians.
Malaysia hosted several rounds of peace talks in 2013 between one insurgent group and the previous government. But the dialogue made little headway and was cut off by political crisis and last year's coup.
Experts on the conflict say the peace effort has been hampered by divisions within insurgent groups and doubts over whether the rebel negotiators in the previous talks -- from the Barisan Revolusi Nasional -- truly represented fighters on the ground.
Mr Jabat, however, said Mara Patani includes the BRN along with five other factions.
During their contacts with the government officials this week, Mara Patani asked for immunity for rebels over past violence as a condition for resuming talks.
That proposal, however, has previously been met coolly by Bangkok, which has thus far shown an unwillingness to compromise, undercutting hopes of resuming full negotiations.
The insurgents also said peace talks should be enshrined by the Thai parliament as a national objective, to avoid future negotiations being scuppered again by government changes in Bangkok.
