Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has appointed former premier Thaksin Shinawatra as an informal advisor when Malaysia takes up the chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations next year.
The decision was announced by Mr Anwar at a joint press conference with Thaksin's daughter, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, in Putrajaya on Monday.
"I have agreed to appoint (Thaksin) as my informal advisor on chairing Asean, along with a team of members from Asean countries in an informal setup," the Bernama news agency quoted him as saying.
Malaysia will be the Asean chair next year after Laos ends its chairmanship this year.
Ms Paetongtarn is on a two-day visit to Malaysia ending on Monday.
Thailand and Malaysia will study the possibility of linking their campaigns to bolster the tourism sector and vowed to speed up efforts to deepen border relations, according to the joint statement released after the meeting.
Thailand will embark on a campaign dubbed "Amazing Thailand Grand Tourism Year" next year and Malaysia has designated 2026 as the Visit Malaysia year.
Although deputy government spokeswoman Sasikarn Watthanachan said the Malaysian prime minister supported the "Six Countries, One Destination" scheme proposed by Thailand as it would benefit the two countries, the joint statement said only that the Thai initiative needed more talks.
"The two prime ministers welcomed further discussion by officials from both countries on the "Six Countries, One Destination" scheme, proposed by Thailand," it said.
Thailand has pushed for a tourism scheme similar to the Schengen region of the European Union with one visa to travel between countries. The six countries are Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Brunei.
The two prime ministers also hoped for the completion of a new bridge linking Sungai Kolok district in Narathiwat and Kelantan's Rantau Panjang in the next three years and pledged more cooperation on road, rail and customs links at their border to promote development and economic activities.
The two countries also agreed to push for bilateral trade to reach $30 million by 2027.
Thailand also supported Malaysia in addressing the situation in Myanmar, the joint statement said, adding that Malaysia plans to set up the office of special Asean envoy on Myanmar when Kuala Lumpur takes over the chairmanship role from Laos.
