BANGKOK, Sept 13 – Thai Army chief Prayuth Chan-ocha flatly denied a report that Thailand has accepted four of the five demands concerning the country’s restive South as proposed by the militant group Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN).
He was referring to a statement by BRN liaison officer Hassan Taib on YouTube, claiming that Thailand agreed to four of the five demands earlier submitted by them.
The proposals were not made during the peace talks and their documents were not sent to Thai authorities, he said, adding that officials were translating the BRN statement.
The army had representatives in the meeting of the Centre to Mobilise Policy and Strategy to Solve Problems in the Southern Border Provinces and no conclusion was reached yet, Gen Prayuth said.
He said the continued violence and attacks in the South have not created a favourable atmosphere for dialogue with southern militants and the Thai delegation in the peace talks should clearly understand it.
A Thai security team, led by the National Security Council, has held three rounds of peace talks with the BRN leaders in Kuala Lumpur. The fourth round was tentatively scheduled for next month.
The army chief spoke to reporters on his return from the Pacific Armies Chiefs Conference and the Pacific Armies Management Seminar in New Zealand yesterday.
