VLADIVOSTOK — With a breakthrough achieved in peace negotiations between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), a peace treaty could be signed by year-end, Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, said here, Sunday. Najib, who held a bilateral meeting with Philippine President Benigno Aquino on the final day of the 2012 APEC Summit, said Malaysia's role as facilitator in the peace talks was appreciated by the Philippines. “I have expressed a wish to be present when the peace agreement is signed in the Philippines," he told Malaysian journalists covering the summit in Russky Island here Sunday. The Malaysian Armed Forces and Malaysian facilitators had played a vital role in finding a resolution to the conflict in southern Philippines. On Saturday, the Philippine peace negotiating panel ended four days of exploratory talks with the MILF on a successful note in Kuala Lumpur. In a joint statement, Philippine chief negotiator Marvic Leonen and MILF peace panel chair Mohagher Iqbal reported they had “reached substantive gains in the negotiations" through Malaysia's facilitation. According to Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario, the bilateral meeting involving Najib and Aquino conveyed expectations the peace process could be finalized within two months. — Agencies
