Thai Prime Minster Thanin Kraivichien tried to revive the Seato [Southeast Asia Treaty Organization] as well as establish some kind of a bilateral military arrangement with the Philippines outside ASEAN [Association of Southeast Asian Nations].
I convinced him this is unnecessary and even dangerous.
We should fight subversion and insurgency on the principle that each country assumes this responsibility. Help should be limited to intelligence exchange as well as of information.
This is embodied in the Joint Communique.
Office of the President of the Philippines
Were there any instance when the conference threatened to fail?—
Yes on Dec. 21, 1976. When the dinner given for us by Prime Minster Thanin Kraivichien at the Manila Plaza was going on, USec. [Carmelo] Barbero called me up desperately from Tripoli to inform me that the conference was being terminated by the Four Man Committee of the Islamic Conference because we would not agree to the inclusion of Palawan, Cotabato Sur and Davao [del] Sur in the Muslim Region of Autonomy.
How about the visit of the First Lady?
Yes on the 3rd and 4th days of the visit. Again the visit threatened with failure because there was a demand that the First Lady’s party and she herself meet with Nur Misuari which would have given the MNLF [Moro National Liberation Front] which included complete federalization or autonomy which of course was unacceptable.
Tanggapan ng Pangulo ng Pilipinas
(OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE PHILIPPINES)