The Thai government said it was prepared to discuss the violence in the kingdom's Muslim-majority south with the world's largest Muslim grouping when foreign ministers meet in Yemen later this month.

"There have been references to that fact that we do not want the issue of the southern part of Thailand to be discussed at all. That is not the case," said newly installed Foreign Minister Kantathi Suphamongkhon.

"I would be very happy to discuss the situation ... with my colleagues when I go the OIC meeting. I will have an opportunity to actually meet with foreign ministers," he told reporters.

The foreign ministers of the Organisation of the Islamic Conferencewill gather in Yemen from June 28-30. Thailand has observer status at the OIC.

Foreign minister's visit

Kantathi, who was appointed to the post earlier in March, is on his first official visit to Malaysia.

Kantathi earlier met his Malaysian counterpart Syed Hamid Albar in Putrajaya.

He is on a four-day visit and will meet Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi today. On Saturday he will travel to Langkawi island and Sunday to Kelantan to meet the local Thai community.

Syed Hamid described his talks with Kantathi as good and warm, adding that "it is not the approach of the OIC to discuss a subject with the intention to create tension or confrontation."

More than 690 people have been killed since January 2004 in unrest that authorities blame on a mix of Islamic separatist insurgents, organised crime and contraband smugglers.

The government's tough response to the violence has strained relations with several Muslim countries, including Thailand's predominantly Muslim neighbor Malaysia, which holds the chairmanship of the 57-nation OIC.