Army chief meets Myanmar generals

Army chief meets Myanmar generals

YANGON (Reuters): Thai army chief Gen. Surayuth Chulanont has met the military rulers of neighboring Myanmar in an effort to patch up relations strained by armed clashes over disputed territory.

The official Myanma News Agency said Chulanont met his Myanmar counterpart Gen. Maung Aye, head of the military government Senior Gen. Than Shwe and chief of military intelligence Lt. Gen. Khin Nyunt after his arrival on Wednesday. The agency gave no details of the meetings.

But before leaving Thailand, Surayuth said his mission was to soothe relations with Myanmar which have been tested in recent months by a series of gun battles in disputed maritime territory between the southern Thai province of Ranong and Myanmar's Victoria point.

At least seven people have been killed in the sporadic incidents involving armed Myanmar vessels and the Thai navy since the middle of 1998.