BANGKOK: Malaysia and Thailand will set up a Ministerial-Level Transport Committee to discuss bilateral policies and related issues as part of efforts to strengthen the transport sector in both countries.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook said the proposal to establish the committee was submitted to his Thai counterpart, Suriya Juangroongruangkit.
“The formation of this Malaysia-Thailand Ministerial Transport Committee is expected to help resolve various policy-related matters and overcome operational constraints.
“In the next three months, we hope to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) that will outline high-level cooperation between the two transport ministries to address bilateral issues,” he told Bernama on Friday.
Earlier, Loke undertook a one-day working visit to Thailand, where he held a meeting with Suriya, who is Deputy Prime Minister and Transport Minister.
He also visited the Bang Sue Central Terminal and received a briefing on the high-speed rail services.
Loke said the visit helped to strengthen understanding between Malaysia and Thailand, particularly in the field of transport.
“We also discussed cooperation in technical aspects and joint procurement of trains to achieve better value,” he said.
He added that such discussions are crucial to improving operations and facilitating rail services between the two countries.
“Most importantly, we hope this can help integrate Malaysia’s rail transport system with Thailand’s, and eventually extend the network across ASEAN. This is part of our effort to realise the Pan-Asian Railway Network,” he said.