Malaysia and Thailand o­n Thursday signed a military co-operation pact aimed at tightening security along the two countries' porous border to prevent Islamic militants from operating in the region, officials said.

Najib Razak, defence minister said the countries signed an agreement detailing the various enforcement activites that would be carried out by them for 2003 to ensure security and stability at the border.

"The agreement is a manifestation of our committment to combat any form of security threats which includes terrorist activities, transnational crimes such as drug smuggling and illegal entry," he told reporters after the annual 43th Thai-Malaysian general border committee meeting.

Najib said it includes joint patrols, standardising military operational procedures and opening up new entry points to enhance economic activities between the two countries.

Malaysia and Thailand have achieved marked success in "our efforts to combat smuggling and illegal entry," adding that o­n-going coordinated land patrols would nonetheless be intensified, he said.

Osama's proxies

Najib said following an hour-long talk with his Thai counterpart General Thammarak Isarangura there was a heightened concern from militant Islamic groups like the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) regional terror network.

"From our side, we are concern that they should not use southern Thailand as a sanctuary, particularly for elements of JI who are trying to escape arrest.

"The minister has agreed that Thailand is equally committed in arresting them. We cannot allow extremists elements to seek sanctuary o­n either side of the border area," Najib said.

Last year, Thailand's Supreme Commander General Surayud Chulanont said suspected terrorists have sneaked into Thailand over the past 12 months to avoid a clampdown in neighbouring Malaysia.

Jemaah Islamiyah dreams of creating a pan-Islamic state in Southeast Asia.

JI has been described by analysts as being the Southeast Asian proxy of Osama Bin Laden's Al-Qaeda network, and has been blamed for last October's Bali bombing which killed 202 people.

Thammarak in his opening remarks said new forms of security threats had emerged which requires both countries to work closely together.

"We need to enhance our efforts to combat the threats such as terrorism and drugs and reinforce intelligence cooperation," he said.

Small-scale violence

Thammarak said he was confident long-standing cordial relations between the two countries would ensure security in southern Thailand, where two deadly attacks have happened recently.

Four navy personnel were killed during an attack o­n a navy weapons depot in Thailand's southern Narathiwat province late April.

In a separate incident at around the same time, another 15 men stormed an army weapons depot in Yala province's Yala district and stole 18 M-16s and two other rifles.

Thailand will host the next meeting in May, 2004.

Thailand's five southern Muslim majority provinces have in recent years been plagued by small-scale Muslim separatist violence, but most analysts believe remnants of militant groups are incapable of carrying out major attacks.

The region was wracked by a spate of violence over 2001-2002 during which more than 20 policemen were killed, trains bombed, government offices attacked and weapons depots raided. - AFP