Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin and Prime Minister of Malaysia Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim have agreed to establish a task force to boost cooperation in trade, tourism, agriculture, and security between Thailand and Malaysia.

The two leaders met in Sadao district, Songkhla province, on 27 November 2023, when the Prime Minister of Malaysia paid a working visit to Thailand. This meeting followed up on Prime Minister Srettha's official visit to Malaysia in October 2023.

Both sides emphasized their commitment to advancing cooperation in border development for the well-being of the people living along the Thai-Malaysian border. Prime Minister Srettha asked Malaysia to host a meeting of their Joint Trade Commission at the minister of commerce level to tackle trade problems.

Malaysia was urged to expedite the working out of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Cross-Border Transport of Goods. Thai and Malaysian chambers of commerce at the local level were also encouraged to work jointly to increase bilateral trade value, promote tourism, and develop border areas.

The Thai government has temporarily suspended the T.M. 6 immigration form for foreign tourists entering Thailand at the Customs, Immigration, and Quarantine (CIQ) Sadao checkpoint from 1 November 2023 until 30 April 2024 to facilitate the entry of Malaysian tourists to Thailand. As a result, since the start of this measure on 1 November 2023, the number of Malaysian tourists has increased by 64 percent at the Sadao checkpoint in comparison with the same period of last year.

In 2022, about 2.7 million Malaysians visited Thailand, making them the largest group of tourists in Thailand, with more than one third travelling into Thailand through the Sadao checkpoint. Thailand hoped that the MOU on Cross Border Transport of Passengers between the two countries would be completed soon to facilitate the travel of Thai tourists to Malaysia.

Concerning agriculture, the Thai government plans to set up a halal department under the Ministry of Industry. In this regard, Thailand will seek cooperation from Malaysia in halal development and the standards of halal food and products, as halal food is essential for food security.

On border security, the governments of Thailand and Malaysia have been working closely to prevent and suppress transnational organized crimes in the border areas, such as drugs, human trafficking, and illegal wildlife trade. They are expected to sign an MOU on cooperation in combating wildlife smuggling in February 2024.

Regarding key connectivity projects to promote trade and tourism, both sides discussed the construction of the road alignment between the new Sadao CIQ of Thailand and the Bukit Kayu Hitam Immigration of Malaysia, and the second bridge linking Su-ngai Kolok in Narathiwat with Rantau Panjang in Kelantan.