The government is set to lift martial law in four districts of the three southern border provinces, says Defence Minister Phumtham Wechayachai.
He said he plans to meet state agencies to discuss the lifting of martial law after a mobile cabinet meeting in Songkhla on Feb 17–18 decided the enforcement of martial law in four districts of Pattani, Yala, and Narathiwat should be revoked.
"Efforts to end the conflict in the deep South are making progress," said Mr Phumtham, who also serves as a deputy prime minister.
He added he will visit the three southern border provinces -- Yala, Pattani, and Narathiwat -- on April 26–27 to meet local businessmen, district chiefs, police officers, soldiers, and officials from the Internal Security Operations Command Region 4 Forward Command, to gather input before finalising details of a new strategy to tackle the unrest in the deep South.
Mr Phumtham also said no conclusion has been reached regarding the make-up of a new peace negotiation team that will be established to address the conflict in the three southern provinces. This will depend on the government's new strategy, which will determine the direction of the peace effort, he said.
In a message posted on social media on Friday, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim hailed bilateral talks held on Thursday with Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra.
"In our bilateral meeting, I conveyed my appreciation to Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra for her strong commitment to deepening Malaysia–Thailand relations.
"We welcomed progress on existing agreements, particularly efforts to boost economic growth in northern Malaysia and southern Thailand.
"With Thailand now Malaysia's sixth-largest trading partner and total trade exceeding US$25 billion last year, these initiatives will help us reach our US$30 billion target by 2027.
"To this end, we agreed to accelerate key projects, including the new Rantau Panjang–Sungai Golok bridge and flood mitigation works along the Golok River.
"We also witnessed a significant milestone with the signing of the Friendship Bridge construction agreement by our respective ministers. Our discussion also touched on US tariffs, where we reaffirmed our shared commitment to addressing the issue collectively through Asean, guided by dialogue," Mr Anwar wrote.